Nature – first prize, stories. Pandemic Pigeons – A Love Story. The photographer’s daughter, Merel, cowers after Dollie flies past and perches on the balcony before entering the house in Vlaardingen in the Netherlands on 6 April 2020. “She’s still frightened when Dollie suddenly lands on the balcony railing. I hide my smile behind the camera, as I try to comfort her by saying they won’t hurt you. “I thought he was going to attack me”, she replies. As the nesting pigeons keep coming back to our place, slowly my girls have started to appreciate them – perhaps not as much as I do, but it’s a start”. (Photo by Jasper Doest/World Press Photo 2021)

This photo provided by Steamboat Ski Resort shows hot air balloons that visitors can tour in above the town and mountains in Steamboat Springs, Colo. Wild West Adventures offer continental breakfast, champagne ceremony with flight certificates and courtesy pick-up are included. (Photo by Larry Pierce/AP Photo/Steamboat Ski Resort)

“The Dragon and The Hopper”. Eyrean earless dragon (Tympanocryptis tetraporophora) standing tall on a very hot rock in western Queensland. For a short time it was joined by a hopper, who jumped off before becoming lunch. (Photo by Harrison Warne/Nature Conservancy Australia 2021 Photo Contest)

People wear clothing to protect them from the heat while riding along a street in Hanoi, Vietnam, 24 April 2019. North and central Vietnam was recently affected by extreme hot weather, with the highest temperatures reaching over 40 degrees Celcius, according to the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting. (Photo by Luong Thai Linh/EPA/EFE)

Noah, 10, cools himself off in his garden during hot weather in Hertford, Britain, June 25, 2020. The UK is experiencing a summer heatwave, with temperatures in many parts of the country expected to rise above 30°C and weather warnings in place for thunderstorms at the end of the week. (Photo by Andrew Couldridge/Reuters)

A gallery assistant poses for a photograph with an artwork entitled “John Perreault, 1972” by US artist Alice Neel during a press preview of “Alice Neel: Hot Off The Griddle” at the Barbican Art Gallery in London on February 15, 2023. (Photo by Justin Tallis/AFP Photo)

A street vendor prepares watermelon juice for sale at a roadside stall during a heatwave in Karachi, Pakistan, 17 May 2023. According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department the weather in the Sindh capital will remain extremely hot and dry. (Photo by Shahzaib Akber/EPA/EFE)

Giant 65-foot-long Hot dog artwork by Brooklyn-based artist duo Jen Catron and Paul Outlaw stands on the middle of Times Square in New York City, NY, USA on April 30, 2024. (Photo by Guerin Charles/ABACA Press/Rex Features/Shutterstock)