Bird Photographer of the Year – An estimated 1.3 billion birds die each year in North America as a result of window collisions. Here, thousands of bodies are laid out at the Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAP) in Toronto.| Patricia Homonylo / Bird Photographer of the Year
An impactful photo showing 4,000 birds that died from colliding with buildings has won Bird Photographer of the Year 2024.
The remarkable image taken by Patricia Homonylo from Canada shows thousands of birds that were killed by flying into windows and other reflective surfaces in urban areas.
To a bird, a reflective surface can appear to be a continuation of the landscape and some birds will fly full steam into a hard object like a window.
“Each year more than one billion birds die in North America alone due to collisions with windows,” says Homonylo, per a press release.
“I am a conservation photojournalist and have been working with the Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAT), where we save window-collision survivors in Toronto. Sadly, most of the birds we find are already dead. They are collected and at the end of the year, we create this impactful display to honour the lives lost and increase public awareness.
“I hope people are shocked by what they see and are moved to act by using bird-safe glass and supporting organisations like FLAP.”
Bird Photographer of the Year saw more than 23,000 images entered into the competition with a grand prize of $4,670 (£3,500). Below are the category winners.
Bird Behaviour
Gold – A turkey vulture picks over the remains of a black bear in West Virginia. The photo was taken on a camera trap. | Nathaniel Peck / Bird Photographer of the Year
Silver – A fledgling peregrine falcon chases after a butterfly in southern California. | Jack Zhi / Bird Photographer of the Year
Bronze – An ill-fated Magellanic penguin is stalked by a southern sea lion off the Falkland Islands. | Tom Schandy / Bird Photographer of the Year
Best Portrait
Gold – A grey-crowned rosy-finch perched on a branch in Homer, Alaska. | Alan Murphy / Bird Photographer of the Year
Silver – A swan is framed through the neck of another swan in London. | Samual Stone / Bird Photographer of the Year
Bronze – A black grouse on a chilly spring morning in Finland. | Markus Varesvuo / Bird Photographer of the Year
Birds in Flight
Gold – A Eurasian hoopoe takes flight in Dubai. | Hermis Haridas / Bird Photographer of the Year
Silver – A goldfinch lands on a garden plant and is illuminated by a flash and a camera in rear curtain mode. | Nicolas Groffal / Bird Photographer of the Year
Bronze – A brown booby takes off from the Sea of Cortez, Mexico. The photographer dived with two underwater flashes for the shot. | Suliman Alatiqi / Bird Photographer of the Year
Birds in the Environment
Gold – A trio of northern gannets in the Shetland Islands, Scotland. | Kat Zhou / Bird Photographer of the Year
Silver – A gentoo penguin surfs the waves in the Falkland Islands. | Levi Fitze / Bird Photographer of the Year
Bronze – A cape petrel feeds in Antarctica. | Jonas Beyer / Bird Photographer of the Year
Black and White
Gold – A hoary-headed grebe disappears below the water to feed in Sydney, Australia. | David Stowe / Bird Photographer of the Year
Silver – A grey heron silhouetted by a full Moon in South Africa. | William Steel / Bird Photographer of the Year
Bronze – Three wild turkeys photographed through a living room window in Minnesota. | Sparky Stensaas / Bird Photographer of the Year
Comedy Bird Photo
Gold – An adélie penguin tobogganing on the ice in Antarctica. | Nadia Haq / Bird Photographer of the Year
Silver – An eastern screech owl in Florida. | Robert Gloeckner / Bird Photographer of the Year
Bronze – Helmetshrikes huddle together in South Africa. | Gary Collyer / Bird Photographer of the Year
Urban Birds
Gold – A goosander crosses the road with her young in Poland. | Grzegorz Długosz / Bird Photographer of the Year
Silver – Two common kestrels making their home in a nest box in Hungary. | Boldizsár Szűcs / Bird Photographer of the Year
Bronze – Hooded crows and jackdaws silhouetted against the Berlin television tower. | Tomáš Grim / Bird Photographer of the Year
Conversation (Single Image)
Gold – 4,000 dead birds that flew into buildings laid out in Canada. | Patricia Homonylo / Bird Photographer of the Year
Silver – A pair of lovebirds, in separate cages, at a bird market in Bali. | Cheng Kang / Bird Photographer of the Year
Bronze – A deceased northern gannet hangs from a fishing line on the Isle of Noss, Scotland. | Joshua Galicki / Bird Photographer of the Year
Photographers competed in eight different categories in the adult competition: Best Portrait, Birds in the Environment, Bird Behaviour, Birds in Flight, Black and White, Urban Birds, Conservation (Single Image), and Comedy Bird Photo. There was also a Conservation Award, Portfolio Award, and Video Award.
All awarded images are published by Princeton University Press in a hard-back coffee-table book, which is now available online at birdpoty.com. The 2025 competition is already open for entries.