A man wears a busho mask and a costume made of sheep pelt while climbing up a ladder outside a barn in Mohacs, Hungary, 20 February 2020, on the first day of carnival. The traditional Busho carnival, which marks the end of winter, dates back to the 16th century. According to local legend, members of an ethnic South Slavic group living in Mohacs at the time dressed up in similar costumes and wore wooden masks to scare away Ottoman invaders, who mistook them for demons. (Photo by Tamas Soki/EPA/EFE)

Fishermen carry calabashes to attend Argungu fishing and cultural festival at Argungu Town, Kebbi State in northwestern Nigeria, on March 14, 2020. Argungu fishing and cultural festival is one of the oldest and most widely attended festivals in the country dating back many generations, featuring series of water competitions and traditional games. The festival returned after 10 years suspension due to insecurity in northwest Nigeria. (Photo by Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP Photo)

A green rosella and a wallaby, known as a Pademelon, eye off as they drink from a water bowl put out for thirsty wild animals at a back-yard in Kayena, in northern Tasmania, 01 February 2019. Australia recorded its hottest month on record in January; it was also the hottest and driest month on record for the Australian island state of Tasmania. (Photo by Barbara Walton/EPA/EFE)

Rougine, a 19-year-old female Arab fighter among the Syrian Democratic Forces, made up of US-backed Kurdish and Arab fighters, stands in fatigues embracing another colleague near the village of al-Torshan, 20 km on the outskirts of Raqa on February 6, 2017. (Photo by Delil Souleiman/AFP Photo)

Drivers merge onto expressway lanes after passing through the Wuzhuang toll station at Chuzhou, in China's eastern Anhui province, as they make their way back home on the second-to-last day of an eight-day National Day holiday on October 7, 2025. The Wuzhuang toll station, located on the border between Anhui and Jiangsu provinces, is China's largest expressway toll station, with a total of 36 lanes. (Photo by AFP Photo/China Stringer Network)

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)

The sea otter mother with her three day old newborn pup ontop of her to keep it dry and warm while it sleeps. This devoted mother otter kept her newborn pup dry as she let the baby ride on her belly. Nature photographer Suzi Eszterhas, 40, spotted the adorable pair of southern sea otters swimming in Monterey Bay, California. The mother lifted the pup out of the water and on to her belly to keep it warm and dry and also blew air into the pup's fur to groom it. Ms Eszterhas was shocked to see the otters come closer to where she was standing and the mother left her child to float alone in the water. (Photo by Suzi Eszterhas/Minden Pictures/Solent News & Photo Agency)

Pangolins in Crisis: Brent Stirton, South Africa; 1st place, Natural world and wildlife. “Pangolins are the world’s most illegally trafficked mammals, with an estimated one million trafficked to Asia in the last 10 years. Their scales are used in traditional Chinese and Vietnamese medicine, and their meat is sold as a high-priced delicacy. As a result, pangolins are listed as critically endangered and anyone who trades or consumes them is breaking the law. This body of work exposes the trade, while exploring aspects of illegality and celebrating the people who are trying to save these animals”. (Photo by Brent Stirton/Sony World Photography Awards 2020)