Federico Veronesi wins the Wildlife Photographer: the shot with an elephant with a dead cub

An elephant carrying the lifeless body of her calf across a dry river: it is thanks to this heartbreaking image, made even more dramatic by the black and white, that the Italian nature photographer Federico Veronesi is the overall winner of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026, the most prestigious nature photography competition in the world promoted by the Natural History Museum in London.

This edition recorded a record number of applications, with over 65 thousand shots from 121 countries and territories. The finalist photos were evaluated by an international jury of photography, cinema, science and conservation experts, assessing their creativity, originality, technical excellence and ability to tell stories linked to the natural world.

The winning shot, titled 'The Aftermath', was taken in the Huab River Valley, Namibia. Veronesi was following elephant tracks when he came across some unusual drag marks in the sand: the elephant had made them, and the photographer then immortalized her carrying the cub's body between her trunk and tusk. “This photograph works on many levels,” says jury president Kathy Moran. "On an emotional level it is a punch in the stomach, heartbreakingly moving. On an intellectual level it is proof that animals possess cognitive abilities. This photograph says it all!".