A Rare Hyena in a Ghost Town: The Haunting Image That Earned Wim van den Heever the 2025 Wildlife Photographer of the Year Prize
There are photographs that capture beauty — and then there are those that capture emotion, silence, and the strange connection between life and decay. This year’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year winner falls firmly into the latter category. South African wildlife photographer Wim van den Heever has won the prestigious 2025 title for his haunting image of a rare hyena wandering through the ruins of an abandoned ghost town.
The photograph, titled “Ghost of the Plains,” shows the striped hyena standing amid the skeletal remains of a once-inhabited settlement, with broken stone walls and the hollow shell of a house looming behind it. The scene is bathed in an amber glow — part dust, part sunset — that adds an eerie, dreamlike quality to the moment. It’s a frame that feels frozen between two worlds: the human and the wild, the past and the present, the living and the forgotten.
Van den Heever said he captured the image in the desolate mining town of Kolmanskop, Namibia — a place reclaimed by the desert after being abandoned decades ago. “The silence there is overwhelming,” he told BBC Earth. “To see a hyena — one of Africa’s most misunderstood creatures — appear in that space felt symbolic. It was as if nature had quietly taken back what humanity left behind.”
The hyena, believed to be one of the few remaining striped hyenas in the region, was photographed at dawn as it cautiously moved through the rubble. Known for their reclusive nature, striped hyenas are rarely seen in open daylight, making the encounter extraordinary. Van den Heever had reportedly spent three nights in the area, tracking signs of wildlife and waiting for the perfect blend of light, mood, and movement.
The judges of the competition described the photo as “hauntingly poetic.” One member of the panel said, “This image bridges wildlife and human history. It reminds us that even after we vanish from a place, life continues — quietly, resiliently, and beautifully.”
The annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, developed and produced by the Natural History Museum in London, attracts tens of thousands of entries from around the world. This year’s finalists included underwater images of coral restoration, close-ups of endangered species, and emotional portraits of animal-human coexistence. But it was Van den Heever’s image that stood apart — not just for its technical perfection, but for the emotion it carried.
In his acceptance remarks, Van den Heever spoke about the message behind his photo. “This image is not just about a hyena,” he said. “It’s about what remains when we’re gone — how nature endures, even in the places we abandon. It’s both a warning and a reassurance that life finds a way.”
The image has since gone viral across social media, with viewers describing it as “haunting,” “cinematic,” and “deeply moving.” Many said the photo feels like a mirror to the times — a reflection of how human presence fades, but the wild world continues to breathe in our absence.
For Van den Heever, the win marks another milestone in a career dedicated to capturing not just animals, but emotion through nature’s lens. “Wildlife photography isn’t only about beauty,” he said. “It’s about truth. Sometimes that truth is quiet and unsettling — but that’s what makes it powerful.”
The winning photograph will be displayed at the Natural History Museum in London before touring globally as part of the 2025 Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition, ensuring that millions will witness the ghostly beauty of a hyena that stood among ruins — and reclaimed the silence we left behind.
