Deer with decaying trophy head and frolicking lynx vie for top nature photography prize.

Captured by Kohei Nagira, “Never-Ending Struggle,” shows a sika deer with the detached head of a competing male. This stag emerged victorious in a dispute over a doe, but was unable to free his antlers from his opponent’s. According to a nearby fisherman, this deer pulled his rival’s corpse for days before ultimately detaching the head.(Image credit: Kohei Nagira / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

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Striking visuals depicting a deer toting a decaying head of a competitor and a lynx frolicking with its prey are among the entries shortlisted for an annual wildlife photography competition’s public choice award.

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year Nuveen People’s Choice Award 2026 is put on by the Natural History Museum in London. Anybody across the globe can now vote for their preferred photograph through the internet.

Other noteworthy visuals encompass a “superpod” of spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris) pushing their sustenance toward the ocean’s surface, and a tiger (Panthera tigris) exhibiting an uncommon genetic anomaly leading to broad, black stripes.

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Two upsetting visuals of polar bears (Urus maritimus) are also featured among the shortlist: one capturing a mother along with her three cubs resting on barren land during Canada’s summer season, with another displaying a cub during a hunting expedition within Svalbard taking a bitter turn as the cub with its mother wandered overly near to a populated community.

Voting concludes on March 18th, and the triumphant image is scheduled for revelation by March 25th. It will be presented alongside 100 images originating from the preceding year’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year contest in an exhibit showcased at London’s Natural History Museum, open until July 2026.

The Natural History Museum in London develops and puts on Wildlife Photographer of the Year. Be sure to let us know which visual is your favorite within the comments.

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Josef Stefan’s “Flying Rodent” showcases a young lynx whimsically tossing a rodent up in the air.(Image credit: Josef Stefan / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Cecile Gabillon’s “Swirling Superpod” displays a sizable grouping of spinner dolphins rounding up lanternfish towards the Pacific Ocean’s surface. (Image credit: Cecile Gabillon / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Charles Davis’s “Above and Below” captures a brushtail possum infant with its parent mirroring one another as they climb along a limb.(Image credit: Charles Davis / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Dvir Barkay’s “Hold Me Tightly” captures a brown-throated three-toed sloth parent cradling its offspring to shield it against the rain.(Image credit: Dvir Barkay / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Chris Gug’s “Along for the Ride” captures an immature swimming crab hitchhiking atop a jellyfish inside the Lembeh Strait, North Sulawesi, Indonesia.(Image credit: Chris Gug / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Prasenjeet Yadav’s “Dark Knight” features a seldom-seen tiger sporting thick, black stripes wandering through an Indian tiger reserve.(Image credit: Prasenjeet Yadav / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Mogens Trolle’s “Into the Furnace” captures a sun bear using a furnace as shelter during rainfall, with a butterfly landed on its snout.(Image credit: Mogens Trolle / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)