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Lynx Photo Wins 2026 Wildlife Photographer People's Choice

Is "Flying Rodent" a groundbreaking wildlife photo or a powerful symbol of conservation success?

Published MAR 25

Lynx Photo Wins 2026 Wildlife Photographer People's Choice

Story

Above: Iberian lynx plays with its prey in Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice 2026 winner. Image credit: Josef Stefan/Wildlife Photographer of the Year/Natural History Museum

The Facts

Austrian photographer Josef Stefan won the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Nuveen People's Choice Award 2026 for "Flying Rodent," an image of a young Iberian lynx tossing a rodent into the air at Torre de Juan Abad in Spain's Ciudad Real province.
Wildlife Photographer of the Year on Facebook
BBC News
York Press
Stefan spent two weeks observing lynx from a hide before capturing the winning shot. The lynx played with its prey for about 20 minutes before carrying it behind a bush to eat it.
Amateur Photographer
CNN
The People's Choice Award received a record 85,917 votes from a global public, with the shortlist of 24 images drawn from 60,636 total entries submitted across 113 countries and territories.
Digital Camera World
Sky News
The Iberian lynx had fewer than 100 individuals remaining in the early 2000s. Conservation efforts, including captive breeding, habitat restoration and reintroduction programs have since grown the population to more than 2,000, though the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) still lists the species as vulnerable.
Natural History Museum
ZME Science
Four images were highly commended in the public vote: flamingos beneath power lines in Namibia by Alexandre Brisson, a polar bear and three cubs by Christopher Paetkau, bear cubs play-fighting on a road by Will Nicholls, and a sika deer carrying a rival's severed head by Kohei Nagira.
Sky News
York Press
The winning image and four runners-up will be displayed at the Natural History Museum in London, which organizes the competition, until the exhibition closes on July 12, 2026. "Flying Rodent" will also appear on the gallery wall alongside the main competition winners.
Amateur Photographer
Natural History Museum

Sources Split

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The Spin

Narrative A

Josef Stefan's "Flying Rodent" is proof that wildlife photography can move mountains — 85,917 people voted it the best, making it the most-voted People's Choice winner ever. Capturing a rare Iberian lynx tossing a rodent mid-air with a Nikon Z9 and 600mm lens, Stefan turned two weeks in a hide into a career-defining moment.

Digital Camera World

Narrative B

"Flying Rodent" winning the Nuveen People's Choice Award matters far beyond the photo itself — the Iberian lynx went from roughly 100 individuals in the early 2000s to thousands today, a 1,500% population increase driven by real conservation work. This image is a rallying cry, not just a pretty picture, showing what targeted habitat restoration, captive breeding and cross-sector collaboration can actually achieve. Photography without that conservation backbone is just decoration.

Natural History Museum