The winners of the Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards
Karlina Valeiko
11 June 2018
Wonderful wildlife photos
Whether on a safari in South Africa or tracking bears in Canada, wildlife watching can be one of the most exciting ways to explore a destination. It can also be hilarious, as proved by these savvy photographers. For the fourth year running the Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards are using their annual competition as a way of raising awareness about conservation. Here, we take a look back at the funniest entries since the competition's beginnings.
Angel bear
This bear is simply angelic, though appears to be totally unimpressed by his newly-gained wings.
Laughing dormouse
We're not in on the joke with this one, but it's making us smile just as much. This photo of a laughing dormouse, taken in Italy, secured the photographer a win in the On The Land category in 2017.
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Grassland warrior
This majestic lizard was spotted guarding his area of grassland.
Sunday best
Who knew penguins were so pious? This trio of flightless birds was captured on South Georgia Island in the southern Atlantic.
Hitching a ride
A polar bear cub clings to the backside of his mother in Manitoba, Canada.
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Mudskipper's got talent
Two mudskippers appear to be belting out an opera duo in this picture taken in Krabi, Thailand.
Hole in one
A naughty fox captured leaving an unwelcome surprise on a golf course in San Jose, USA.
Say what?
There's a serious gossip culture among the seals in San Simeon, California.
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Morning yoga
Nothing like a relaxing morning stretch session.
Laughing matter
If you could hear this seal laugh, you know it'd be a hearty, Santa-style ho, ho, ho.
Hippo on the loose
"Is there something on my back? I swear there's something on my back!"
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Warming embrace
Sometimes you just need a hug...
D'oh!
We've all been there...
Friends in high places
We thought it was only meerkats that employed this kind of surveillance, but apparently wildebeest do too...
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Turbo duck
Taken in Preston, England, this photo of a duck flying in front of a plane trail won the Up In The Air category last year.
Ninja squirrel
A red squirrel caught showing off his best moves.
There's always one
This burrowing owl, photographed in Santa Rose, Argentina, took the expression 'look at things from a different perspective' a little too literally.
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Great escape
This pair are literally monkeying around North Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Shameless
A gorilla's gotta do what a gorilla's gotta do...
What's up, Doc?
We all hate being photographed mid-meal, but this wild rabbit captured in Flanders, Belgium wears it quite well.
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Lucky escape
A pelican misses out on lunch at Kerkini Lake, Greece.
Happy as Larry
This cheerful sea otter, captured in California, isn't shy about sharing his joy.
The conductor
This squirrel appears to be conducting an orchestra in a meadow.
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A slap in the face with a wet fish
This salmon is getting its own back on the bear trying to eat it.
Get out of my way
This sea turtle isn't happy sharing the limelight with a fish in Bacong, Philippines. The picture won the Under The Sea category last year.
Bad hair day
We've all had them. This deer was captured camouflaging in Richmond Park, London.
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Rush hour
This chubby little hamster won the first-ever competition in 2015.
Caught in the act
This shot, taken in Harghita county, Romania, has caught two bears in a rather compromising position.
Big yawn
This cute owl is channelling all of us on a Monday morning.
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On the edge
And this is us by Friday, clinging onto the day... This is the overall winner from 2017's competition, captured in Ópusztaszer, Hungary.