2026 Audubon Photography Awards: Rare Owl and Roseate Spoonbill Take Top Prizes
The 2026 Audubon Photography Awards have announced their winners, with Francisco Castro Escobar's image of a rare lesser horned owl in northern Chile taking the grand prize for the Chile/Colombia contest. The owl, nicknamed 'the ghost of the desert,' was spotted during a dawn hike, and Escobar described the encounter as an apparition due to its rarity. In the U.S. and Canada division, Jacqueline Burke won the grand prize for her photograph of a bathing roseate spoonbill in a Florida cove. The awards feature two parallel competitions: one for photographers in the U.S. and Canada, and another for those in Chile and Colombia. Additional categories include Birds Without Borders, Plants for Birds, Youth, and Conservation. Notable winners include Rodrigo González Pairoa for his black-browed albatross image in Chile, Josh Galicki for his conservation-focused photo of northern gannets nesting in old fishing nets in Shetland, and Mike Henry for his gila woodpecker and saguaro cactus shot in Arizona. The winning photographs highlight avian diversity and the impact of human activities on birds, such as the risk posed by discarded fishing gear. Audubon emphasized the patience and effort required to capture such fleeting moments. All winners and honorable mentions, including videos, are available on the contest's website.
Key facts
- Francisco Castro Escobar won the grand prize for Chile/Colombia with a photo of a lesser horned owl in northern Chile.
- Jacqueline Burke won the grand prize for U.S. and Canada with a photo of a roseate spoonbill in Florida.
- The 2026 Audubon Photography Awards include categories such as Birds Without Borders, Plants for Birds, Youth, and Conservation.
- Josh Galicki won the Conservation category for his photo of northern gannets nesting in old fishing nets in Shetland.
- Rodrigo González Pairoa won Birds Without Borders for his black-browed albatross image in Chile.
- Mike Henry won Plants for Birds (U.S. and Canada) for his gila woodpecker and saguaro cactus photo in Arizona.
- The awards run parallel competitions for photographers in the U.S./Canada and Chile/Colombia.
- Audubon noted that hours, days, or years of patience go into capturing such images.
Entities
Artists
- Francisco Castro Escobar
- Jacqueline Burke
- Rodrigo González Pairoa
- Josh Galicki
- Mike Henry
- Juan David Camacho Márquez
- Timothy Dhalleine
- Santiago Giraldo
- Camilo Sanabria Grajale
- David Paredes Bravo
- Kevin Lohman
- Ian Shultz
- Gail Bisson
- Liron Gertsman
- Faber Mosquera Alvarez
- Nick Parayko
- Santiago Pérez Rincón
- Gonzalo Bertolotto Quintana
- Jay Vanos
- Erich Podbielski
- Marcelo Cárcamo Vera
- Mary Anne Karren
- Sebastian Herzog
- Santiago Perez Rincon
- Cristian Camilo Castano Vargas
- Marcelo Carcamo Vera
- Juan David Camacho Marquez
- Camilo Sanabria Grajales
- Lourdes Venard
- Alexander Wilson
Institutions
- Audubon Photography Awards
- National Audubon Society
- Colossal
- Audubon magazine
- Smithsonian magazine
- HX Expeditions
Locations
- Chile
- Colombia
- United States
- Canada
- Florida
- St. Augustine
- St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park
- Shetland Islands
- United Kingdom
- Isle of Noss
- Tucson
- Arizona
- El Queremal
- Valle del Cauca
- Torres del Paine National Park
- Magallanes and Chilean Antarctic Region
- Anaime
- Cajamarca
- Tolima
- Guadalajara de Buga
- Alto del Zarzo
- Manizales
- Caldas
- Natural Bridges State Beach
- Santa Cruz
- California
- Almirantazgo Fjord
- northern Chile
- Paposo Natural Preserve
- Antofagasta
- Seattle
- Puget Sound
- Nova Scotia
- Kīlauea volcano
- Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
- Guácharos Cave National Natural Park
- Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica region
- Caddo Lake Wildlife Management Area
- Karnak
- Texas
- Alberta
- Cannon Beach
- Oregon
- Haystack Rock
- Natural Bridges State Park
- Anaime River Canyon
- Antarctica
- Elqui River
- Chilean Patagonia
- Halemaʻumaʻu Crater
- Isla Nosa
- South Georgia Island
- Falklands
- Brazil
- Australia
- Andes
- Ecuador
- Mexico
- Alaska
- Argentina