A ceremony at the Natural History Museum, London, has revealed the results of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year contest, and the winning photos are worth all of the attention they can get. This year, the annual competition has attracted nearly 50,000 entries from 92 countries and the organizers were kind enough to share them.

Photojournalist Brent Stirton has won the Grand Title for his picture of a black rhino's mutilated body. According to judge Roz Kidman Cox, his image was "symbolic of one of the most wasteful, cruel and unnecessary environmental crimes, one that needs to provoke the greatest public outcry." The shot was also included in Stirton's entry to the World Press Photo 2017 Nature category where his story won the first prize as well.

#1 'Arctic Treasure' By Sergey Gorshkov, Russia, Animal Portraits Finalist

Enchanted by its rugged beauty, Sergey finds any excuse to return to Wrangel Island. With no supplies available, he has to bring everything by helicopter – this two month trip took a year to plan. Collaborating with researchers, Sergey worked from shelters at the edge of the snow goose colony to reduce his impact on the inhabitants of this frozen world. In late May, a quarter of a million snow geese arrive on Wrangel Island – the world’s largest breeding colony. Opportunistic Arctic foxes take advantage of the feast, stealing eggs and caching them for leaner times. But the geese and foxes are well matched – it would have taken luck and cunning to win this prize.

#2 'Children Of The Rainforest' By Charlie Hamilton James, UK, The Wildlife Photojournalist Award: Single Image Finalist

Charlie was working in the remote Machiguenga community of Yomibato when he came across Yoina and her pet tamarin. Every day, she would go for a swim taking her tamarin with her. ‘I have no idea why,’ says Charlie. ‘The tamarin hated it and spent the whole time clambering onto her head to escape the water.’ Yoina’s tribe have inhabited the protected rainforest of Yomibato for generations and have earned the right to hunt animals (without guns) for food. The tribe consider themselves part of nature and take just enough to ensure their and the forest’s survival. When monkeys carrying young are killed, the babies are often kept as pets and later released.

#3 'Snow Spat' By Erlend Haarberg, Norway, Black And White Finalist

As spring awakens in the upland birch forest of Vauldalen, tensions between mountain hares grow. One night, two hares came to blows in front of Erlend’s hide, squabbling over food he had left out to attract them. Snowflakes flying, Erlend froze the action, later converting the image to black and white to accentuate the drama of the moment. As their Latin name, Lepus timidus, suggests, mountain hares are timid creatures, cautious after a lifetime of being hunted by predators and for human sport. In spring they become more active and, under the cover of darkness, scrap over food and females.

#4 'Stuck In' By Ashleigh Scully, USA, 11–14 Years Old Winner