Guardian of the Mangroves – Overall Winner. Tanya Houppermans, Cuba. A curious American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) swims right up to Tanya, at Gardens of the Queen (Jardines De La Reina), an archipelago off the coast of Cuba. It has been strictly protected since 1996, and is one of the most untouched marine ecosystems in the world. ‍ “The healthy population of American crocodiles is down to the pristine condition of the mangroves and I wanted to capture close ups of this gentle giant in its natural habitat. I hope this image can illustrate that protecting areas like this is so critical”. (Photo by Tanya Griffin Houppermans/Mangrove Photographer of the Year)

A street entertainer waits for tourists in Havana, Cuba on October 2009. (Photo by Desmond Boylan/Reuters)

The photography duo of Floto+Warner created the series, “Colorant”, from an idea that stemmed out of a previous series and the fascination of landscapes, with results that leave one in awe. Creating shapes, not experienced in nature, they tossed colored water in the air to capture “a momentary graffiti of air and space”. Using a high shutter speed to capture these fleeting moments, Floto/Warner has produced a multi-medium series with jaw-dropping results. Photo: “Orange Salt Flats”. (Photo by Floto/Warner)

With their affinity for hunting, sneaking, and hidden blade-like retractable claw, cats are really the assassins of the animal world. They're not as intimidating when they're kittens dressed up as assassins from the upcoming Assassin's Creed Unity, but what they lack in deadliness they more than make up for in cuteness. YouTube user Mr.TVCow posted the video, in which four hooded kittens hunt down a french soldier, much like like in a number of trailers for Assassin's Creed Unity. They use their eagle vision ability, parkour after their target, and perform lethal aerial assassinations, and yes, it's as unbearably adorable as it sounds.

Cuban girls dressed as nurses and a lizard wait for their turn to dance during a visit by the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington in Havana July 13, 2015. The choir made its first appearance on July 12, 2015 in Cuba as part of a tour that will include a dozen concerts in the context of the restoration of relations between the island and the United States. (Photo by Enrique de la Osa/Reuters)

In this February 5, 2014 photo, Divaldo Aguiar, who plays the part of Pachencho, is carried in a mock coffin during the Burial of Pachencho celebration, through a cemetery in Santiago de Las Vegas, Cuba. Cuban villagers stage a mock funeral and burial of Pachencho, with a living man playing the part of Pachencho, in a boozy festival that has become an annual tradition in this small town near Havana, held each February 5 for the last 30 years. (Photo by Enric Marti/AP Photo)

Supporters of former Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide dance and drum as they wait near the airport for his expected arrival from Cuba, where he underwent medical treatment, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, July 16, 2021. Aristide's return adds a potentially volatile element to an already tense situation in a country facing a power vacuum following the July 7 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. (Photo by Fernando Llano/AP Photo)

A cadet from the Interior Ministry with the word Fidel painted on her face attends a rally honoring the late Cuban leader at the Revolution Plaza in Havana, Cuba, Tuesday, November 29, 2016. Schools and government offices were closed Tuesday for a second day of homage to Fidel Castro, with the day ending in a rally on the wide plaza where the Cuban leader delivered fiery speeches to mammoth crowds in the years after he seized power.Fidel Castro passed away Friday Nov. 25. He was 90. (Photo by Ramon Espinosa/AP Photo)