People dressed in costumes have a break while marching during the Vijanera Festival, in the small village of Silio, northern Spain, Sunday, January 3, 2016. The Vijanera masquerade, of pre-Roman origin, is the first carnival of the year in Europe symbolizing the triumph of good over evil and involving the participation of crowds of residents wearing different masks, animal skins and brightly coloured clothing with its own complex function and symbolism and becoming the living example of the survival of archaic cults to nature. (Photo by Francisco Seco/AP Photo)

A vendor decorates a sacrificial camel ahead of the Eid al-Adha festival, in Karachi, Pakistan, 23 August 2016. Eid al-Adha is the holiest of the two Muslims holidays celebrated each year, with this year will be celebrated on 02nd September. Eid al-Adha marks the yearly Muslim pilgrimage (Hajj) to visit Mecca, the holiest place in Islam. Muslims slaughter a sacrificial animal and split the meat into three parts, one for the family, one for friends and relatives, and one for the poor and needy. (Photo by Rehan Khan/EPA)

Andrew Parkinson, animal behaviour category winner: Crepuscular Contentment, Derbyshire. “In 15 years of working with badgers I’ve never seen a badger sit out in the open to have a scratch. I was sat concealed behind a tree and downwind so it was especially nice that the badger had his back to me, demonstrating just how inconspicuous and inconsequential my presence was”. (Photo by Andrew Parkinson/British Wildlife Photography Awards 2017)

People wearing bear fur costumes dance during the annual bear ritual gathering in Comanesti, Romania, Friday, December 30, 2016. In pre-Christian rural traditions, dancers wearing colored costumes or animal furs, toured from house to house in villages singing and dancing to ward off evil, in the present the tradition has moved to Romania's cities too, where dancers travel to perform the ritual for money. (Photo by Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo)

A lizard wears a cowboy hat at Pet Expo Thailand on May 06, 2023 in Bangkok, Thailand. Dogs take part in a skateboarding competition at Pet Expo Thailand, a four day exhibition held at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center. Dogs were judged on form and agility and separated into novice and experienced categories. Placing first place in the novice category was Mui and first in the experienced category was Suradej. Both house pets and exotic animals were featured at the expo, with visitors and their pets able to interact with them. (Photo by Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images)

In more “raccoons are getting more like us” news, a drunk raccoon was found in a liquor store in Virginia, US in the first decade of December 2025. The animal had got into the shop via some loose ceiling tiles, knocked bottles of spirits off the shelves, lapped up the contents and passed out in the toilets. Once it had sobered up, it was released back into the wild – no doubt with a crashing hangover. (Photo by AP Photo)

In this Tuesday, February 11, 2014, photo, a trained monkey, that makes a living for her Pakistani owner by performing to a crowd in public and private places, sits held by a leash, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. For Pakistanis who raise and train the monkeys they are an important source of income in an impoverished country, and they form a strong bond with the animals. The monkeys are usually captured in the wild when they are babies and then trained. A trained monkey can fetch 20,000 to 30,000 rupees ($190 to $285). (Photo by Muhammed Muheisen/Associated Press)

A man dressed as a “Trapajon”, representing entities of nature, poses for a picture after taking part in the Vijanera Festival in Silio, northern Spain, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The Vijanera masquerade, of pre-Roman origin, is the first carnival of the year in Europe symbolizing the triumph of good over evil and involving the participation of crowds of residents wearing different masks, animal skins and brightly colored clothing with its own complex function and symbolism and becoming the living example of the survival of archaic cults to nature. (Photo by Daniel Ochoa de Olza/AP Photo)