Bence Mate's photo of leafcutter ants in Costa Rica has won the Wildlife Photographer of the Year main award. He said: "They were only active at night, which made my job very difficult." He used a flash behind the leaf for the silhouette.

Bridgena Barnard took her family with her in search of this shot in South Africa’s Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park on Christmas Day. She said: "We knew it was a special moment - we were all quiet in the vehicle thinking about what we had witnessed."

Jari Peltomaki described his shot of Dalmatian pelicans in northern Greece as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. "I couldn’t believe my luck when the clouds lifted and I could see the mountains," he said. "I knew I had to make the most of it."

Eirik Gronningsater was with the Norwegian Polar Institute in Svarlbard, Norway, when the polar bear approached. He "sacrificed" a camera, operating it from a boat via remote control. "The bear picked it up, chewed it, and dropped it in the snow," he said.