Oldham teenager's sunset mountain hare shot wins top RSPCA prize

Ben said his patience meant the hare "was fully relaxed in my presence, so I was able to photograph this individual up close"

A teenager's "almost abstract" photograph of a shy mountain hare lying in the winter sun has won the top prize at the RSPCA Young Photographer Awards.

Ben Harrott said it took an hour of "steady approach" to get near the basking jack, but his patience paid off as it was "fully relaxed" for the snap.

RSCPA judge and BBC presenter Chris Packham said the Oldham 17-year-old's photo was "stunning" and "stood out".

Other prize winners included images of a pet cat, a puppy and a butterfly.

Hope Skidmore captured a photo of a green shield bug to win the 12-15 Mobile Phone and Devices category

Thomas Easterbrook was also rewarded for his photo of a hare, as part of a series which won the Portfolio category

Ben said he had been "walking for hours" on a freezing day when he "finally spotted" his subject as the sun was setting.

"After an hour of steady approach, I was the closest I've ever been to a mountain hare," he said.

"[It] was fully relaxed in my presence, so I was able to photograph this individual up close as the sun was going down."

He said he was "so happy" to win both the top prize and the 16-18 age group category at the awards ceremony at the Tower of London.

It was the second year running Ben won an award, having claimed runner-up in the Portfolio category in 2021 for his images of red foxes.

Palvin Fernandes won the 16-18 Mobile Phone and Devices category with his photo Time To Sleep

Max Peltzer captured a baby boomslang swimming in South Africa for his photo River Crossing, which won the Under 12 Years category

An RSPCA representative said the judges had picked his photo of the hare because they were impressed by his "persistence and field craft in capturing this moment with such a notoriously skittish subject and then taking such a skilled picture, with an almost abstract composition".

They said the image also "highlights the issue of climate change", as mountain hares live at higher altitudes, "but warmer winters and little snow means it is harder for them to hide".

"This hare was attempting to hide as best it could," they added.

Demmi Havenhand's photo of Callie was taken shortly after she brought the puppy home for the first time

Joshua Kneale's picture Meet Bill, which won the 12-15 Years category, was taken when he came across a pelican in Namibia

Chris Packham said this year's contest, which saw more than 4,000 entries submitted, had been "difficult to judge as we received so many superb photographs".

"However, Ben Harrott's stunning picture of a mountain hare really stood out [and] Ben is a really worthy winner," he added.

Other prize winners included Demmi Havenhand, from Bedlington, Northumberland, who saw her portrait of puppy Callie win the Pet Personalities category; Thomas Easterbrook, from Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire, who won the Small World category for his image of an orange tip butterfly; and Palvin Fernandes, from Hounslow, west London, who claimed the 16-18 mobile phone and devices category.