An orphaned rhesus monkey and white dove that seemed to have lost its mate forged a special bond at the Neilingding Island-Futian National Nature Reserve in China. The monkey was born on the island but had strayed from its mother. Luckily, it was taken in by work staff in the protection center and became friends with the pigeon that had lingered there after possibly losing its mate. (Photo by CNImaging/Photoshot)

Honorable Mention: “The Storm”. During I was taking photo with my nephew, the storm came and I caught this beautiful moment. Photo location: Kocaeli, Turkey. (Photo and caption by Aytül Akbaş/National Geographic Photo Contest)

A man looks inside an overturned truck after an accident along the road between Nouahibou and Nouakchott, Mauritania December 3, 2009. (Photo by Rafael Marchante/Reuters)

A small flock of birds seems to be giving an escort to an airliner on final approach to Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia on January 12, 2022. The scene took place over Gravelly Point which is an area within the National Park Service's George Washington Memorial Parkway. (Photo by Michael S. Williamson/The Washington Post)

Lightning strikes the Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) in downtown on June 12, 2013 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

This handout picture taken and released by Taipei Zoo on November 2, 2022 showing Chinese panda experts Wei Ming (L) and Wu Honglin (C) checking on sick male panda Tuan Tuan at the zoo in Taipei. (Photo by Handout/Taipei Zoo via AFP Photo)

A picture made available on 07 March 2016 shows visitors petting and holding a Fennec fox, native to the Sahara, in the petting room at the Little Zoo Cafe, a business built to capitalize on Thais' love for exotic animals, and food, on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, 05 March 2016. The cafe boasts Fennec foxes, Meerkat, native to parts of Africa, Silver Fox, Raccoon and Chinchillas, along with a menu of Thai food and Cheesecake, among other sweet deserts. Nature is a faraway fantasy in the bustling exhaust-filled cement city of Bangkok, fuelling a demand to own and be close to exotic pets. The trend to be near to a species that was once wild, in a city environment, far from the natural setting, has drawn criticism but continues to grow. (Photo by Barbara Walton/EPA)

Clara Macaroni, 3, rests on her father's prize-winning Shorthorn cow before a parade at the opening ceremony for the Rural Society's annual exposition in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Sunday, July 28, 2024. (Photo by Rodrigo Abd/AP Photo)