(CNN) --
A spectacular image of a snow leopard gazing out over the Indian mountains has been voted the winner of this year's People's Choice Award for Nature Photographer of the Year.
A record 60,466 people chose German photographer Sascha Fonseca's image titled "The World of the Snow Leopard" as the favorite of the prestigious contest.
Fonseca used a camera trap to capture the image of this unusual big cat at sunset, with the mountains of Ladakh in northern India as a backdrop.
The image was selected among the 25 that the Natural History Museum in London chose from almost 39,000 applications.
It will now be on display in the museum's Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition through July 2.
There are only an estimated 6,500 adult snow leopards in the wild today, and their existence is threatened by poaching, habitat loss, and conflict with humans.
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In a statement issued by the museum, Fonseca thanked everyone who voted for his photo: "Photography can connect people with wildlife and encourage them to appreciate the beauty of the unseen natural world. I believe that a greater understanding of life wild leads to deeper care that hopefully translates into active support and increased public interest in conservation."
"The World of the Snow Leopard" was taken by German photographer Sascha Fonseca.
Fonseca carefully placed a camera trap in the Indian Himalayas.
Credit: Sascha Fonseca/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
The director of the Natural History Museum, Douglas Gurr, said in the statement: "The fruit of dedication and perseverance, Sascha's extraordinary image captures the breathtaking beauty of our planet and reminds us of our shared responsibility to protect it."
One of the four images selected as "highly praised" also features a leopard, though not a snow leopard.
In "Holding on", Igor Altuna captured a leopard carrying a dead monkey and its cub.
In Spanish director Igor Altuna's "Holding on," a baby monkey clings to its dead parent as it is led away by a leopard in Zambia's South Luangwa National Park.
Credit: Igor Altuna/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Brittany Crossman's “Fox affection” shows red foxes nuzzling each other while a polar bear cub plays on the shoreline of Hudson Bay, Canada, in Martin Gregus's “Among the flowers”.
"Fox affection," by Canadian Brittany Crossman, captures a friendly moment on Prince Edward Island.
Credit: Brittany Crossman/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
"Among the Flowers" by Martin Gregus captures a polar bear cub playing on the shoreline of Hudson Bay, Canada.
Credit: Martin Gregus/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Finally, "Portrait of Olobor", by Marina Cano, depicts a majestic male lion in the Maasai Mara of Kenya.
"Portrait of Olobor", by the Spanish Marina Cano, is a striking image of one of the five male lions of the Black Rock pride, in the Maasai Mara Nature Reserve, in Kenya.
Credit: Marina Cano/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
The Museum of Natural History states in its statement that the exhibition harnesses the "unique emotional power" of photography to "shed light on stories and species from around the world" and help create advocates for the planet.