While many of us would pay good money for a spa mud bath, these fortunate hippos in South Luangwa National Park, Zambia, have nature to thank as they take a plunge in a lagoon in the second decade of February 2024. (Photo by Dimitar Nedelchev/Solent News)

Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez attend The 58th GRAMMY Awards at Staples Center on February 15, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage)

Against the scorching sun, a hungry jackal chases a flock of birds looking for a quick morning snack. Taken in South Africa's Kgalagadi Transfrontier National Park, these images capture the moment a lone hunter tries, and then succeeds, in his pursuit. (Photo by John Mullineux/Solent News)

The National Geographic Photo Ark is a travelling exhibition of photographer Joel Sartore’s quest to create a photo archive of biodiversity around the world. So far, Sartore has captured studio portraits of more than 6,000 species – a number that he hopes to double. On 1 July, the ark will open at Melbourne zoo – the first time it has been exhibited in the southern hemisphere. More than 50 portraits will be on display, including many of Australian endangered animals being protected by programs at the zoo itself. These captions have been edited from text supplied by Melbourne zoo. Here: Barking owl. (Photo by Joel Sartore/National Geographic Photo Ark/The Guardian)

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

A zoo keeper holds a month old striped Hyena cub called Hachi at the Bali zoo in Giayar, Bali Indonesia on Saturday, February 6, 2021. (Photo by Firdia Lisnawati/AP Photo)

A handout image released by the Taronga Zoo shows Veiled Chameleon hatchlings at Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, 11 March 2015. Taronga has welcomed more than 20 baby chameleons, with the last of three clutches of eggs hatching this week. Veiled Chameleons, or Chamaeleo calyptratus, are native to Saudi Arabia and Yemen and can live up to five years. (Photo by EPA/Taronga Zoo)

Peruvian surfer Domingo Pianezzi rides a wave with his alpaca Pisco at San Bartolo beach in Lima March 16, 2010. Pianezzi has spent a decade training dogs to ride the nose of his board when he catches waves, and now he is the first to do so with an alpaca. (Photo by Pilar Olivares/Reuters)