A man throws water at pedestrians as residents join in a water-splashing frenzy to honor their patron Saint John the Baptist's Feast Day in San Juan, Metro Manila, Philippines June 24, 2016. San Juan is renowned for its celebration of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist every year of June 24. In a nod to the saint's characteristic act, San Juaneños engage in Basaan (“wetting”), where revellers splash people with water. (Photo by Romeo Ranoco/Reuters)

Mongolia's Olympic wrestler Battsetseg Soronzonbold (front) fights with her training partner during a daily training session at the Mongolia Women’s National Wrestling Team training centre in Bayanzurkh district of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, July 1, 2016. Battsetseg Soronzonbold became a national hero in her native Mongolia after winning wrestling bronze at the London Olympics and is determined to turn the medal into gold in Rio next month. (Photo by Jason Lee/Reuters)

Every year in Fairbanks, Alaska, the World Ice Art Championships takes place, and it is no cute little side hobby. Praised as one of the world’s largest ice sculpting competitions and exhibitions, the World Ice Art Championships has grown into a month-long event featuring more than 70 teams from around the world. The works are stunning and often massive in both size and visual appeal.

The snow leopard (Panthera uncia syn. Uncia uncia) is a large cat native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species because as of 2003, the size of the global population was estimated at 4,080-6,590 adults, of which fewer than 2,500 individuals may reproduce in the wild.

Zookeeper Michael Horn holds up Kit and Kitty, the twin red pandas born in June on the first day of their introduction into their new enclosure at Tierpark Zoo on September 13, 2011 in Berlin, Germany. The red panda (Ailerus fulgens) is a rare mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Fighters battle in Manhattan's Union Square during a massive pillow fight on April 2, 2011 in New York City. Over 130 cities worldwide are participating in the fourth annual International Pillow Fight Day. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

A dramatic rise in owning exotic pets in China is fuelling global demand for threatened species. The growing trade in alligators, snakes, monkeys, crocodiles and spiders is directly linked to species loss in some of the world’s most threatened ecosystems. Here: A fennec fox (Vulpes zerda) is groomed in a pet store in central Beijing. Native to the Sahara in North Africa, the species became a popular pet after being depicted as a character in Disney’s 2016 animated movie Zootopia. Individuals can cost between $2,000–$3,000. (Photo by Sean Gallagher/The Guardian)