The hare was actually yawning and stretching but, looking back at the photos, it does look like it was laughing — probably at my husband and I as we had been sat there in the freezing conditions for about five hours just waiting for this kind of behaviour in Cairngorms, Scotland in the last decade of February 2025. (Photo by Michelle Coyle/Solent News & Photo Agency)

An egret in the second decade of April 2025 cools off in the Florida heat by gular fluttering, rapidly vibrating its throat muscles with an open beak. The mechanism helps to dissipate heat through evaporation. (Photo by Ronen Tivony/ZUMA Press Wire/Alamy Live News)

Chester Zoo in the second decade of August 2025 has welcomed a pair of tiny golden lion tamarins, named George, seven, and Leaf, 12. (Phoot by Chester Zoo)

A meerkat stands guard as her pups cuddle at Mountain Zebra National Park, South Africa early November 2025. (Photo by Nadine Leonard/Two Point O Media)

Mark Taylor may not have any training as a photographer, but that doesn’t stop him from taking amazing animal photos. From his studio in Southeast England, Taylor has made a big business out of photographing man’s best friends, following in the footsteps of his late mother, Jane Burton. Most of the animals he works with are babies, who are more comfortable in front of the camera than older animals.

Photo: Taylor often uses animals that belonged to friends of his late mother, including this Italian Spinone puppy chewing his tail. Baby animals make ideal subjects, as the older dogs and cats get, the warier they are of spending time in a studio. And his trick for getting this small subject to pose? Dog treats, of course. (Photo by Mark Taylor/Rex Features)

An elephant from Earl's Court Circus with a man in its mouth, 1928. P.S. All pictures are presented in high resolution.

Western lowland gorilla Kijivu holds her newborn baby at the Prague Zoo in the Czech Republic. (Photo by Isifa/Getty Images)