A hyena kisses his own reflection while appearing to walk on water. (Photo by Jake De Wet/Caters News Agency)

Winner, photojournalism. Elephant in the room, by Adam Oswell, Australia Zoo. Visitors watch a young elephant performing underwater. Oswell was disturbed by this scene, and organisations concerned with the welfare of captive elephants say performances like this encourage unnatural behaviour. In Thailand, there are now more elephants in captivity than in the wild. With the Covid pandemic causing tourism to collapse, elephant sanctuaries are becoming overwhelmed with animals that can no longer be looked after by their owners. (Photo by Adam Oswell/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2021)

A wild leopard runs on the stairs as it tries to escape from a compound of a house in Kathmandu, Nepal June 1, 2016. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)

A tourist poses for a picture with the Sphinx at the Pyramids of Giza in Cairo, Egypt, on October 19, 2011. (Reuters/Jamal Saidi)

“Double head vulture”. On the day of windy days during raptors migration some people in my country start to catch these tired raptors, so in this day we go to photograph some raptors and we saw these tow tired vultures, so we start to drag them away from the hunters until they reach a good hidden place, to make them safe until they start a new journey. Photo location: Kuwait. (Photo and caption by Mohd Khorshed/National Geographic Photo Contest)

People pose for a photo with certificates after swimming in the ocean for the 121st annual Coney Island Polar Bear Club's New Year's Day plunge at Coney Island beach in the Brooklyn borough of New York, New York, USA, 01 January 2024. (Photo by Sarah Yenesel/EPA)

Los Angeles Kings center Zack MacEwen, left puts Edmonton Oilers center Ryan McLeod int the bards during the second period in Game 3 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series Friday, April 21, 2023, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Mark J. Terrill/AP Photo)