The funniest wildlife photos of the year

You often hear about cats getting stuck in trees. This 3-month-old lion cub wanted to come down from one, but his descent didn't go so well. He was luckily fine after landing: "He nimbly dropped to the ground, then scampered off with his siblings!" said photographer Jennifer Hadley, who won the 2022 Comedy Wildlife Photography Award with the shot.

Jennifer Hadley also won the Affinity Photo 2 People's Choice Award with this shot of gentoo penguins she photographed on the Falkland Islands. The American photographer says on her website that she is "hooked" to photographing natural wonders and that she travels "all over the world capturing wildlife in their element."

The Indian sarus crane's wing span behind a Nile Gau antelope in Keoladeo National Park, making it look like a Pegasus. The Nile Gau had ventured too close to the crane's nest for comfort. The area in northwestern India is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is home to hundreds of bird species in its marshy area of almost 3,000 hectares. This shot was taken by Indian photographer Jagdeep Rajput.

Like in an action movie — think of the legendary "Matrix" scenes, for example — this squirrel flies through the air spectacularly. The raindrops around it give the scene an extra touch of drama. The photo was taken in Maashorst in the Netherlands. Behind the lens was Dutch nature photographer Alex Pansier. He calls the image "Jumping Jack."

This American red fox casually walked to the edge of the woods, sat down, looked back and winked at photographer Kevin Lohman. Then he disappeared back into the woods. Lohman met the fox in San Jose, California. More famous for its technology in Silicon Valley, the city is also surrounded by nature.

This furry comrade also seems to be interacting with the photographer. "I photographed the raccoon on a beach in Florida, where I fed him. Then he thanked me in this way," says Czech photographer Miroslav Srb. The raccoon is known for its masked markings around their eyes. In fact, it's because of this mask that they're often portrayed as bandits, spies or ninjas in cartoons.

This heartwarming image of a monkey stroking his fellow's chest while relaxing, visibly enjoying the tease, was caught by the Italian Federica Vinci at the Baphuon temple in Angkor Thom near Siem Reap. The 11th-century temple is a popular place for monkeys to hang out or, in this case, lie around.

It's better not to mess with these three. In this image, these young Kamchatka brown bears are reminiscent of Kerberos from Greek mythology, a hellhound usually depicted with three heads that guards the entrance to the underworld. Paolo Mignosa from Italy met them at Lake Kurile on the Russian peninsula of Kamchatka, which is a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site.

The photo named "Say cheeeese" by Arthur Telle Thiemann from Spain, which was taken near the Azores island of Faial, shows two supposedly broadly grinning gray triggerfish. Do not be deceived by their charming smiles, though. "Even though they look funny, these fish can be quite aggressive," the photographer said. Indeed, his camera incurred a few scratches in the process.

As if they had rehearsed it, these two-eared vultures in South Africa's Kruger National Park present their plumage in perfect harmony. But what they show is only a small part of their feather splendor. The potential wingspan of Lappet-faced Vultures is 250-290 cm, which makes them among the largest birds of prey ever. The photo was also taken by Italian Saverio Gatto.