Arctic treasure by Sergey Gorshkov (Russia). An arctic fox carries its egg trophy from a raid on a snow goose nest and heads for a suitable burial spot. Finalist 2017, Animal Portraits. (Photo by Sergey Gorshkov/2017 Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Dressed up as Punxsutawney Phil, Marty Nagy, of Hallandale Beach, Fla., gives thumbs up to passers by before the start of the 12th annual Groundhog Day on Hollywood Beach, Tuesday, February 2, 2016, in Hollywood, Fla. The event, which featured breakfast and an ocean plunge, benefited the Hollywood Beach Lifeguard Competition Team. (Photo by Wilfredo Lee/AP Photo)

Raccoon Fritzi eats at the home of veterinarian Mathilde Laininger in Berlin, Germany, January 27, 2022. She cares for four raccoons that can no longer be released into the wild. Raccoon Fritzi has an Instagram account with ten thousand followers. (Photo by Hannibal Hanschke/Reuters)

A sofa floats in the polluted waters of Jacarepagua Lagoon, during a press tour in Rio de Janeiro, March 9, 2015. A press tour was organised by biologist Mario Moscatelli, to call attention to pollution on the waters of the lagoons which surround the Rio 2016 Olympic Park. (Photo by Ricardo Moraes/Reuters)

Cave Diver, Anhumas Abyss, Bonito, Brazil: The Anhumas Abyss is an underground cavern with a crystal-clear lake below, more than 260 feet (79 m) deep. A visitor must enter through a narrow opening at the top of the chamber and rappel into the cave. Snorkeling and scuba diving in the lake reveal amazing scenery. Distinctive, conical limestone stalagmites and stalactites occupy the lake and the surrounding area, some reaching 65 feet (20 m) high. (Photo by Marcio Cabral/Nature’s Best Photography Awards 2017)

Amar, who is one-and-a-half years old and a Syrian refugee living in Turkey, looks on as the search for survivors continues in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake in Kahramanmaras, Turkey on February 13, 2023. (Photo by Suhaib Salem/Reuters)

A boy jumps from a swing during sunset in Valras-Plage, southern France December 29, 2014. (Photo by Yves Herman/Reuters)

Behaviour: Mammals category. Giant Gathering by Tony Wu, USA. Dozens of sperm whales mingled noisily off Sri Lanka’s northeast coast, stacked as far down as Tony could see. This was a congregation of dozens of social units, like a gathering of the clans. Aggregations like this could be a critical part of the whales’ rich social lives but are rarely reported. Some two thirds of the population was wiped out before commercial whaling was banned in 1986. This kind of major gathering could be “a sign that populations are recovering”, says Tony. (Photo by Tony Wu/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2017)