Avian Awe: See the Stunning Bird Photographer of the Year Winners

Birds are elegant, powerful, cute, majestic and sometimes goofy. The Bird Photographer of the Year competition highlights these qualities of the bird kingdom along with the passion and skill of photographers from around the world. The annual competition unveiled the 2023 winners this week. Here are some of the highlights.

The top prize winner is a dramatic image of a female peregrine falcon attacking a brown pelican while in defense of her nest in Southern California. "The high-speed chase made it challenging to capture a close-up shot with a long lens. The falcon's precision was amazing as it struck at the pelican's head," said photographer Jack Zhi. 

This image received a gold award in the bird behavior category and earned Zhi the title of Bird Photographer of the Year 2023.

"Glistening-green tanager" is the actual name of this bright-green Ecuadorian bird. Photographer Nicolas Reusens snapped the tanager as it perched on a heart-shaped leaf. "I captured every detail, grateful for this magical moment amid the lush jungle backdrop," said Reusens. The green bird earned Reusens a gold award in the best portrait category of the Bird Photogapher of the Year competition for 2023.

The images are glorious, but the competition is also about raising awareness of bird issues. The competition partners with UK charity Birds on the Brink, an organization that makes small grants for grassroots bird conservation projects.  

What is that? It's not the hummingbird's tongue. It's a bill. The aptly named sword-billed hummingbird has an extremely long bill that helps it reach its favorite food deep inside flowers. The bird was on its way to a feeder when photographer Rafael Armada snapped its portrait in flight. The 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition honored the image with a gold award in the birds in flight category.

The gold award winner for the black and white category in the 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition depicts a young musk duck with its mother. It was feeding time for the youngster in Australia. 

This moment of calm and beauty comes from Polish photographer Mateusz Piesiak. It took top place in the birds in the environment category of the 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition. The bird is a brambling that was feasting in a sunflower field.

The silver award winner in the bird behavior category of the 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition is this heartwarming image of an adult great gray owl feeding its young in a wheat field in China. The raised wings make for an elegant portrait of a family moment. 

The 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition has a place for those moments when nature interacts with the built environment. This image took top honors in the urban birds category. It shows a great gray owl, head bowed, perched atop a statue of a praying angel. According to photographer Arto Leppanen, the owl was hunting voles in a cemetery in Finland.

The Bird Photographer of the Year competition isn't just for adults. There are three categories for young photographers. German photographer Anton Trexler came out on top in the 15-17 years category and also took home the title of Young Bird Photographer of the Year for 2023. 

The winning image shows a blackbird sitting against a reddish moon. 

Young photographer Arko Saha of India won gold for the 11 and under category of the 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition. This gorgeous verditer flycatcher was in a garden near a hotel where Saha was staying. 

Young Swedish photographer Harry Sedin received a gold award in the 12-14 years category of the Bird Photographer of the Year 2023 competition. There are two types of terns in this image, an Arctic and a common tern. They were sitting together on a railing. "By utilizing the white of their bodies, the overcast weather and the bright reflections in the water, I captured a high-key image of the two terns," said Sedin.

Canadian photographer Thomas Vijayan snapped a special family moment as two emperor penguins attended to their chick. It took a lot of patience to capture this view. Vijayan trekked eight hours a day across Antarctica to reach the colony and spent two days stretched out flat on the ice in order to not disturb the family. That effort resulted in a silver award in the best portrait category of the 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition.

The Bird Photographer of the Year competition highlights the amusing side of nature with its comedy bird photo category. The 2023 winner is this snapshot of a purple heron attempting to down a large carp in a lake in Italy. Photographer Antonio Aguti said the heron finally got its meal after several attempts to turn the fish on its side.

Swiss photographer Levi Fitze was struck by the similarity between bird and human behavior on display in this photo of a juvenile king penguin making a demand for snacks. "This juvenile constantly begged until the annoyed adult walked away," said Fitze. "However, the fact that the juvenile was more massive than the adult suggests good parenting overall."

This moment of penguin pushiness earned Fitze a silver award in the comedy category of the 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition.

A Canada jay perches on a frosty branch in upstate New York. "This image shows a jay seemingly concerned that the snow is ramping up, and rightly so, as it made driving back home a challenge," said photographer Jake Levin. The image took third place in the best portrait category of the 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition.

There aren't many humans featured among the 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition winners. The exception is in the conservation category. This third-place winner from Italian photographer Luca Giordano shows a dead peregrine falcon that had been shot by a poacher. A wildlife rescuer examines the bird. X-rays showed the lead shot. "Through this photo, I hope to raise awareness of this ongoing issue affecting wild birds in Italy," said Giordano.

A blue-footed booby rises upward through water in this stunning action shot from UK photographer Henley Spiers. The booby had captured a sardine for a snack. This image received a silver award in the bird behavior category of the 2023 Bird Photographer of the Year competition.

This artful, almost abstract image shows a white-throated dipper on a cold day in Finland. "I focused on longer-exposure shots, using a 70–200mm lens to capture silky-smooth water in each photo," said photographer Stefan Gerrits.