“Ringed Kingfisher” by Felipe Esteban Toledo Alarcón/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Grand Prize Winner, Chile and Colombia.
Location: Saval Park, Valdivia, Los Ríos, Chile
“A blue and grey kingfisher flies out of the water, creating a splash around its wet body, shaggy crest, white collar, and rufous belly. The bird and countless tiny droplets are in sharp focus.”
For its 16th year, the Audubon Photography Awards has expanded into new territory with special categories dedicated to photographers in Chile and Colombia. These nine categories add to the eight prizes awarded to residents of the United States and Canada in this annual celebration of bird photography.
Felipe Esteban Toledo Alarcón was the inaugural grand prize winner for Chile and Colombia with his dynamic photo of a kingfisher emerging from the water. The photographer perfectly captured the way the bird’s flapping wings splash the water, even managing to put the water droplets sharply in focus.
Alarcón is joined by Liron Gertsman, who won the grand prize between the Canadian and American photographers for a fascinating photograph taken in Mexico. Gertsman, who also won the grand prize in 2023, is a staple of the contest and his image of frigate birds silhouetted against the dark sky is yet another memorable entry.
In addition to highlighting biodiversity in Chile and Colombia, which is particularly interesting given the migratory flight paths of many North American birds heading south, this year also presented the new Birds Without Borders Prize. This category asked photographers to submit images depicting birds with migratory paths that cross international boundaries. The addition of the Conservation Prize, illustrating conservation challenges that birds face or ways addressing those challenges can help them thrive, rounds out this year’s expanded competition.
Scroll down to see a selection of the winners and finalists and then head to the online version of Audubon magazine to see the full gallery. Budding bird photographers should also get their cameras ready, as entries for the 2026 Audubon Photography Awards open on January 15, 2026.
The 2025 Audubon Photography Awards has announced its winners.
“Royal Terns” by Jacobo Giraldo Trejos/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Birds Without Borders Winner, Chile and Colombia.
Location: San Andrés Island, San Andrés and Providencia, Colombia
“A white and gray bird, hovering in the air with its wings fully extended, feeds a juvenile perched on a railing, handing it a fish with its orange beak.”
“Magnificent Frigatebirds” by Liron Gertsman/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Grand Prize Winner, United States and Canada.
Location: Teacapán, Sinaloa, Mexico
“Nearly two dozen birds fly in a dark blue sky. Their long, narrow wings and forked tails stand out against wispy clouds and the sun, which is surrounded by a bright halo.”
“Brandt’s Cormorant, red grape algae and seagrass” by Barbara Swanson/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Plants for Birds Winner, United States and Canada.
Location: La Jolla, California, United States
“A black cormorant in profile fills the frame. Its wings sweep forward, and its bright blue eye stands out. Its bill carries grassy material and a strand of pink bulbous algae.”
“Black-necked Stilt” by Solange Sepulveda/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Coastal Birds Chile Honorable Mention, Chile and Colombia.
Location: Papudo, Valparaíso, Chile
“A male shorebird balances on female’s back while spreading his wings. Their long pink legs contrast with their black and white plumage and the golden water.”
“Savanna Hawk” by Luis Alberto Peña/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Conservation Winner, Chile and Colombia.
Location: Cúcuta, Norte de Santander, Colombia
“A dark brown hawk stands on a pile of dried rice ears. Behind it, a fire burns, but in the midst of smoke and orange flames, the bird is alert and serene.”
“Chipping Sparrow” by Sean Pursley/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Female Bird Winner, United States and Canada.
Location: Bogus Basin near Boise, Idaho, United States
“A sparrow with a chestnut cap sits on a branch covered in bright green lichen. The bird faces the camera, with her head tilted to one side and fine strands of material in her bill.”
For the first time, the contest opened up special categories for photographers from Chile and Colombia.
“Purple-backed Thornbill and Gaiadendron punctatum” by Cristian Valencia/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Plants for Birds Colombia Winner.
Location: Villamaria, Caldas, Colombia
“A hummingbird with bright hues of electric purple, black, and specks of yellow hovers in the center of the frame as it dips its long beak into a cluster of golden flowers.”
“American Oystercatchers” by Francisco Castro Escobar/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Coastal Birds Chile Winner.
Location: Antofagasta, Chile
“A black and white American Oystercatcher feeds a chick a mollusk with its long orange beak. Out of focus, rocks and sea surround the scene.”
“Austral Pygmy-Owl” by Francisco Vera Núñez/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Birds in Landscapes Chile Honorable Mention, Chile and Colombia.
Location: Coyhaique, Chile
“A small owl with yellow eyes and fluffy brown plumage with white streaks and spots is perched on a thorny branch. Red rose hips, blurred in the background, surround the owl.”
It also featured expanded categories to highlight migratory patterns and conservation issues.
“Snow Geese” by Yoshiki Nakamura/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Birds Without Borders Winner, United States and Canada.
Location: Mount Vernon, Washington, United States
“Thousands of white geese fill the frame, and their blurred yellow and white wings create an abstract pattern. Their individual bodies are barely visible.”
“Chilean Flamingos” by Caro Aravena Costa/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Birds in Landscapes Chile Winner.
Location: Puerto Natales, Magallanes, Chile
“About 25 flamingos stand in shallow water on a beach. Their backlit bodies cast shadows. A low, flat layer of clouds and looming mountain silhouettes form the background. Warm sunlight envelopes the scene.”
“Sanderlings” by Maceo Susi/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Birds Without Borders Honorable Mention, United States and Canada.
Location: Halibut Point State Park, Rockport, Massachusetts
“Shorebirds stand on a dark, rocky surface against dark clouds. White blurs indicate the birds’ movement as blurred waves crash against the rocks.”
The winners will be featured in the Fall 2025 print issue of Audubon magazine.
“Acorn Woodpecker” by Taryn M. Ware/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Female Bird Honorable Mention, United States and Canada.
Location: Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, Julian, California, United States
“A woodpecker perches on the side of a tree trunk, her red-capped head turned to the left. Acorns fill holes scattered along the bark, and the sky fills the left third of the image.”
“Burrowing Owl” by Jean Hall/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Conservation Winner, United States and Canada.
Location: Marco Island, Florida, United States
“A pile of lumber boards with numbers on them fills the frame, nearly all slightly out of focus. In the right third of the image, a small owl in sharp focus looks at the viewfinder.”
“Blue-headed Parrots” by Shamir Shah/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Birds in Landscapes Colombia Winner.
Location: 5th Street, Cali, Colombia
“The blue heads of two parrots emerge from a hole in a curved tree branch. Below, out of focus, cars, motorcycles, and buses pass on a busy street.”
“Long-eared Owl” by Parham Pourahmad/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Youth Winner, United States and Canada.
Location: Coyote Hills Regional Park, Fremont, California, United States
“An owl with yellow eyes and its wings fanned behind its head flies above a marsh. The long grasses are blurred, and the background is lit up in shades of yellow and orange.”
“Blackburnian Warbler” by Camilo Sanabria Grajales/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Youth Winner, Colombia and Chile.
Location: Santiago de Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia
“A small bird with a deep orange breast and black-and-white-striped wings perches on a moss-covered branch, holding a moth in its beak. The moth’s tiny scales float in the air.”
“Rose-breasted Grosbeak, dogwood tree” by Sean Krepski/Audubon Photography Awards. 2025 Plants For Birds Honorable Mention, United States and Canada.
Location: Prospect Park, Brooklyn, New York, United States
“A grosbeak with streaked and speckled brown plumage perches among dark red leaves. Facing forward, her body is coiled around a branch, and she has a bright red berry in her beak.”
“Northern Gannets” by Joe Subolefsky/Audubon Photography Awards.
2025 Birds in Landscapes Winner, United States and Canada.
Location: Cape St. Mary’s Ecological Reserve, Newfoundland & Labrador, Canada
“Thousands of white gannets speckle a dark rock in the image foreground. A massive bay, starlit night sky, and the hazy Milky Way galaxy illuminate the background.”