Two shoebills, one canoe: Isak Pretorius wins at Wildlife Photographer of the Year, again

South African photographer Isak Pretorius has done it again.

He was exploring a swamp in a narrow canoe when he spotted something remarkable.

Not one, but two of Africa’s most elusive birds.

That moment has now won him one of the world’s most prestigious wildlife photography awards.

Pretorius won the Behaviour: Birds category at the Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026 competition, run by the Natural History Museum in London.

The winners were announced on 13 October.

THE WINNING IMAGE

Pretorius’s image, Scenes from the Swamp, shows two shoebill storks among wetland vegetation.

He was exploring the swamp in a narrow canoe with a guide, and felt exceptionally lucky to see two of the elusive birds at once.

WHY SHOEBILLS ARE SO SPECIAL

Shoebills are among Africa’s most sought-after birds for wildlife lovers and photographers.

They’re known for their huge, shoe-shaped bills, which they use to catch prey such as catfish and lungfish in the swamps where they live.

They’re also hard to find, and face threats including fires, disturbance and the illegal live bird trade, according to research by the University of Cape Town’s FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology.

A SECOND WIN FOR ISAK PRETORIUS

It’s not Pretorius’s first time on the winners’ list.

In 2013, he became the first South African to win the bird behaviour category, with an image of a noddy bird trapped in a spider web.

Pretorius is a specialist wildlife photography guide. He says he uses his images to raise awareness about conservation.

“In showing people the beauty of wildlife, they will care more about it,” he has said. “That’s our best chance of protecting it.”

A STRONG YEAR FOR SOUTHERN AFRICA

Southern Africa featured strongly in this year’s awards.

The overall winner, Italian photographer Federico Veronesi, won with The Aftermath, a black-and-white image of an elephant carrying a dead calf in Namibia.

The Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year title went to Oscar Whitfield, a British photographer living in Zimbabwe, for Labour of Love, an eye-level image of a dung beetle pushing its cargo through the sand.

SOUTH AFRICA’S WINNING STREAK

It’s another proud moment for South African wildlife photography.

Last year, South Africa’s Wim van den Heever was named the overall Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2025, for a ghostly image of a rare brown hyena in a deserted diamond mining town.

THE COMPETITION IN NUMBERS

This year’s competition attracted 65,403 entries.

An international panel judged the images anonymously, looking for originality, technical excellence, ethical practice and creativity.

WHICH WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR IMAGE IS YOUR FAVOURITE?