A male Philippine eagle named Geothermica is seen in an exclosure at Jurong Bird Park in Singapore on November 27, 2019. Singapore unveiled two Philippine eagles at its main aviary November 27, the first breeding pair of the critically endangered raptors to be brought outside their native country as part of a conservation plan. (Photo by Roslan Rahman/AFP Photo)

A jaguar eyes up a group of otters from a riverbank in Porto Jofre, North Pantanal, Brazil early November 2024. (Photo by Octavio Campos Salles/Solent News)

A meerkat stands guard as her pups cuddle at Mountain Zebra National Park, South Africa early November 2025. (Photo by Nadine Leonard/Two Point O Media)

A woman plays with a kitten inside of a line house in downtown Shanghai April 12, 2015. (Photo by Carlos Barria/Reuters)

Dog puppy “Sandy” protects against the rain with an umbrella fixed on her leash during a stroll in Rust, southern Germany, on May 26, 2013. (Photo by Patrick Seeger/AFP Photo)

Thai Princess Bajrakitiyabha (R) and Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana take part in the funeral procession for the late Thai king Bhumibol Adulyadej in Bangkok on October 26, 2017 A sea of black- clad mourners massed across Bangkok' s historic heart early on October 26 as funeral rituals began for King Bhumibol Adulyadej, a revered monarch whose passing after a seven- decade reign has left Thailand bereft of its only unifying figure. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)

A man grimaces walking by the “Lettuce Ladies”, a group of PETA activists, during an event promoting a vegan lifestyle, downtown Bucharest, Romania, Monday, August 14, 2017. Two PETA vegan ambassadors distributed vegan food to passers by in the Romanian capital, the latest stop in a tour including the United States, Russia and Turkey aimed at promoting a vegan lifestyle. The sign reads in Romanian “start fresh: become vegan”. (Photo by Andreea Alexandru/AP Photo)

Merit: A Night at Deadvlei. The night before returning to Windhoek, we spent several hours at Deadveli. The moon was bright enough to illuminate the sand dunes in the distance, but the skies were still dark enough to clearly see the milky way and magellanic clouds. Deadveli means “dead marsh. The camelthorn trees are believed to be about 900 years old, but have not decomposed because the environment is so dry. (Photo and caption by Beth McCarley/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest)