Highly commended birds : Crested guan by Tim Hunt (UK). ‘This photo shows a crested guan in the cloud forests of Costa Rica as it pauses while foraging on a lone branch. Due to the clouds that are so typical for this habitat, I could often only photograph the bird’s silhouette against a grey sky. But then, for a short moment only, the sun broke through the clouds, and I overexposed the image by over two stops in order to blow out the background and allow this beautifully marked bird to stand out’. (Photo by Tim Hunt/GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2015)

Giant panda Ji Lan enjoys an iced birthday cake at Nanning Zoo on June 27, 2022 in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China. Giant panda Ji Lan and her brother Ji Mei celebrated their sixth birthday on Monday in Nanning. (Photo by Yu Jing/China News Service via Getty Images)

A participant takes part in donkey racing, during the 21st edition of annual Lamu Cultural Festival, in Lamu, Kenya, Saturday December 2, 2023. (Photo by AP Photo/Stringer)

Shortlist, open competition, lifestyle. Healing Vibes – the hot springs of Bagno Vignoni in Italy flow out at a temperature of about 49°C. They were appreciated by the Romans for their healing powers, and have been used as therapeutic treatments since the 12th century, under Emperor Federico II. (Photo by Stefano Butturini/Sony World Photography Awards)

A woman looks at The Empire State Building and the New York Skyline during a preview of SUMMIT One Vanderbilt observation deck, which is spread across the top four floors of the new One Vanderbilt tower in Midtown Manhattan, in New York City, New York, U.S., October 18, 2021. (Photo by Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)

A family take a souvenir picture next to giant male panda Xiao Liwu, who was born at the San Diego Zoo and will be repatriated to China with his mother Bai Yun, bringing an end to a 23-year-long panda research program in San Diego, California, U.S., April 18, 2019. (Photo by Mike Blake/Reuters)

Adventurer Sam Cossman movies towards the huge lava lake wearing a custom built industrial proximity heat suit on December 20, 2014 in Ambrym, Vanuatu. (Photo by Conor Toumarkine/Barcroft Media)

Ukrainian soldiers fire with D-30 artillery at Russian positions in the direction of Klishchiivka as the Russia-Ukraine war continues in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine on August 12, 2023. (Photo by Diego Herrera Carcedo/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)