Police officers detain a demonstrator as people protest to defy a ban and march on Taksim Square to celebrate May Day in Istanbul, Turkey on May 1, 2023. (Photo by Dilara Senkaya/Reuters)

Polish boys and girls throw water over each other on “Smigus-dyngus” (or Wet Monday) during the Easter Monday in Szczecin, northwestern Poland, 18 April 2022. Smigus-dyngus is a Roman Catholic celebration held on Easter Monday in Poland. Traditionally, boys throw water over girls, this is accompanied by a number of other rituals, such as making verse declarations and holding door-to-door processions. (Photo by Marcin Bielecki/EPA/EFE)

Lewis McKay, two, from East Kilbride, tries out the drums at the 2024 World Pipe Band Championships in Glasgow. on August 16, 2024 Some 204 bands, representing 13 nations and including 9,000 musicians, are competing over two days. (Photo by Wattie Cheung/The Times)

The first red panda cub was born on May 30 in zoo Zlin. Zoologist Roman Vrzal holds a male of red panda. The Red panda is pictured in Zlin, Czech Republic, August 20, 2014. (Photo by Dalibor Gluck/CTK)

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 dramatic rise in owning exotic pets in China is fuelling global demand for threatened species. The growing trade in alligators, snakes, monkeys, crocodiles and spiders is directly linked to species loss in some of the world’s most threatened ecosystems. Here: A fennec fox (Vulpes zerda) is groomed in a pet store in central Beijing. Native to the Sahara in North Africa, the species became a popular pet after being depicted as a character in Disney’s 2016 animated movie Zootopia. Individuals can cost between $2,000–$3,000. (Photo by Sean Gallagher/The Guardian)

A graffiti, portraying a woman, is seen in Medellin, Colombia on November 19, 2017. Mural graffitis from different artists, street art can be seen in almost every city on Earth, but street arts raw power and potential for change was felt by me most intensively in Medellins Comuna 13, previously one of Colombias most dangerous neighbourhoods, in fact Communa 13 was constant battleground between gangs, narcos, paramilitaries and the government, but today you would hardly recognise it. (Photo by Juancho Torres/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Looking for love by Tony Wu, USA. Highly commended, Animal Portraits. “Accentuating his mature appearance with pastel colours, protruding lips and an outstanding pink forehead, this Asian sheepshead wrasse sets out to impress females and see off rivals, which he will head-butt and bite, near Japan’s remote Sado Island. Individuals start out as females, and when they reach a certain age and size – up to a metre (more than 3 feet) long – can transform into males. Long-lived and slow-growing, the species is intrinsically vulnerable to overfishing”. (Photo by Tony Wu/2018 Wildlife Photographer of the Year)