European Wildlife Photographer of the Year winning photographs: Incredible and powerful photo of a caring stink bug mother takes top spot

European Wildlife Photographer of the Year winning photographs: Incredible and powerful photo of a caring stink bug mother takes top spot

Browse the amazing and thought-provoking winning photographs from this year's European Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition - one of the most prestigious wildlife photography competitions in the world

Published: October 27, 2023 at 7:02 pm

Spanish photographer Javier Aznar González de Rueda has been crowned GTD European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2023 with his photograph of a stink bug mother caring for her young.

For over two weeks, the biologist observed the maternal care behaviour of a stink bug in Ecuador's Yasuní National Park. To Javier's surprise, the female bug guarded not only its eggs but also the newly hatched larvae up to their first moult.

Javier said: 'Maternal care significantly increases an offspring's chances of survival. In Ecuador's rainforest, juvenile stink bugs are vulnerable to attack by numerous predators and parasitoids such as ichneumon wasps. This is a highly complex ecosystem with countless organisms in a vast interconnected web of life.'

A mother stick bug protecting the babies. Image credit: Javier Aznar González de Rueda

The European Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition is one of the most renowned competitions for contemporary nature photography in Europe and beyond.

Launched in 2001, the event quickly became a notable fixture on the international stage. Over the years, the competition has became a seismograph for the ever-changing, contemporary nature photography scene.

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The category winners

Birds winner

Birds in forest by Csaba Daróczi 

Image credit: Csaba Daróczi 

Mammals winner

The last dance by Jens Cullmann

Image credit: Jens Cullmann

Other Animals winner

 Water ballet by Marjan Artnak

Image credit: Marjan Artnak

Plants and Fungi winner

Lichen dinner by Roberto Buen

Image credit: Roberto Buen

Landscapes winner

Volcanic swirls by Joel Delmas

Image credit: Joel Delmas

Underwater World winner

Night time squadron by Catherine Holmes

Men and Nature winner

Lost at sea by Angel Fitor

Image credit: Angel Fitor

Nature's Studio winner

Secret of the Mediterranean by Bruno D'Amicis

Image credit: Bruno D'Amicis

Young Photographer 14 years-old and under winner

Tightrope artist by Alberto Román Gómez 

Image credit: Alberto Román Gómez 

Young Photographer 15-17 years-old winner

Wave by Luca Lorenz

Image credit: Luca Lorenz

Rewildling Europe Award

As part of this year's European Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, the Rewilding Europe Award was presented for the second time.

This award was offered by the GDT in cooperation with Rewilding Europe to honour outstanding achievements in photography with a focus on rewilding. The aim here is to give nature time and space to restore itself in regions that have been affected by human activity. By creating the right conditions, nature can once again shape its own landscapes. This includes pristine river dynamics, the natural succession of forests, complete food chains with their diverse predator-prey relationships, the creation of open landscapes as a result of grazing by large herbivores, and much more.

Rewildling winner

Wolves on the hunt by Tobias Richter

Image credit: Tobias Richter

'It was a late summer evening at one of the countless ponds in the German Lausitz' says Tobias Richter. 'After there had been a thunderstorm in the afternoon, I decided to stay longer than usual in my camouflage hiding place, as the rising fog created a special atmosphere. In the late dusk wild boars (Sus scrofa) approached the water surface.

'Shortly after, two wolves (Canis lupus) pounced on the drinking young. While they fled into the reeds, the sow tried to defend them. After an obviously unsuccessful chase, the wolves returned to the pond and howled in near darkness.'

Have you voted for your favourite photographs in the Wildlife Photography Awards? Browse some amazing photographs and vote for your favourites

More award-winning photographs

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A dramatic photograph depicting an alarmingly rapid ice melt wins Nature TTL Photographer of the Year 2023

Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2023 winning photographs: stunning tri-spine horseshoe crab image crowned best

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