This is the incredible image that earned Swedish photographer Gîran Ehlmé the title of Shell Wildlife Photographer of the year out of 18,000 entries. Dubbed ?Beast of the Sediment?, the underwater photograph depicts a feeding walrus rising from the sea bed.

?It’s got everything, our attention goes straight to the eye,” said judge Mark Carwardine. “A simple graphic image showing interesting behaviour.” Mr Ehlmé, an underwater cameraman with 24 years of diving experience, described the moment he took the picture. ?The walrus looked round and we made eye contact,? he said. The photographer also revealed he took more than 400 images to get his prize-winning shot by swimming with walruses off northeast Greenland.

American Rick Stanley, 17, was named Shell Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2006 for his photo ?The Dilemma?. His picture, taken during an expedition in the Dominican Republic, shows a Hispaniolan tree frog caught in the jaws of a green vine snake. The judges agreed unanimously that Rick’s image was a winner, with judge Tim Flach commenting, “This works on several different levels. On a cursory glance the frog appears to be jumping, but then you notice the snake has grabbed it? then you look at the frog and it seems to be smiling! It’s a complete contradiction.”

The two winning photos will take pride of place in the Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition, which is open to visitors at the Natural History Museum until April 29, 2007. The competition, run by the Natural History Museum and BBC Wildlife magazine is one of the largest competitions of its kind and has been running since. To view more of this year?s winning photographs or find out more about the competition, visit www.nhm.ac.uk/wildphoto.