A Cwmystwyth man has won an award for a brilliant and brutal image.

Mark Parker has won a British Wildlife Photography Award for this photograph of a sparrowhawk catching a starling.

The photograph, which Mark has called ‘Nemesis’, was taken in Hertfordshire.

Mark said he was “delighted and extremely proud” to hear he was the winner of the photography competition’s animal behaviour category award.

“Although the image was taken in Royston, Hertfordshire my wife and I live in Cwmystwyth,” Mark explained.

“The aim now is to capture an image in the local area with the intention of submitting it into the next competition.

“I was both delighted and extremely proud when my image, ‘Nemesis’, was announced as the winner in the ‘Animal Behaviour’ category of this year’s British Wildlife Photography Awards 2026.

“One of the hardest things I had to do was keep it a secret as I was told a week before the official announcement that it had won.”

Mark said he “got into photography quite late in life”.

“My father mentioned to me one day that he had never seen a Kingfisher, which I found quite sad as I think everyone should witness that flash of blue from our most colourful bird at least once in their lifetime.

“To put this right, my wife Susan and I took my parents on a trip along the Llangollen Canal where I was certain we’d see one.

“My father got to see his first kingfisher before sadly passing away the following year, but it was during this trip after looking at some of the images I had taken using just a basic point and shoot camera he thought I had a good eye and should take up photography.

“Within a week of returning home I had bought my first camera, and a few more weeks after that I was hooked!

“It was whilst staying at my mother’s house in Royston that I managed to capture this image.

“We were sitting in the garden having breakfast when the sparrowhawk struck but on this occasion, instead of taking it to its favourite feeding post in the woods, it bought it onto the lawn.

“I grabbed the camera and luckily he stayed long enough for me to get the shot.

“It was all over in less than a couple of minutes and although the image may appear harrowing for some people I can confirm the starling was despatched very quickly.

“Whilst it can be distressing to witness a sparrowhawk catching a songbird in a garden, it is a natural, healthy part of the eco system.

“The decline in songbirds and other garden birds is a much broader, complex issue tied to land management, cat predation and loss of habitat due to development to name just a few, rather than predation by sparrowhawks and other hawks.”

If you would like to see more of Mark’s work, he has set up the Instagram account @markparkerimages.

All of this year’s British Wildlife Photography award-winning images can be seen at www.bwpawards.org.