A nosy polar bear and a lucky squirrel: Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026 shortlist
The polar bear image taken by Audun Rikardsen was among the 'highly commended' entries in this year's competition.
An innovative polar bear photographer captured an image of a female polar bear approaching a seal's breathing hole, before waiting eight hours for the bear to move away. Norwegian wildlife photographer Audun Rikardsen achieved this by rigging an underwater camera with a motion sensor beneath the seal's breathing hole. When Rikardsen saw the captured image, he exclaimed his extreme happiness, although he may have woken up other nearby polar bears in the process. Rikardsen has won two categories in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition in the past.
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