An adult and two children stop to cool off at the water from an open fire hydrant in hot and humid weather in New York City on Thursday, July 11, 2024. After dealing with extreme humidity and heat for the past few days the trip-state area got a break as humidity levels took a slight but noticeable drop. (Photo by John Angelillo/UPI/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Scientists trekking for days to the undisputed furthest north land point on the planet, in October 2024 were greeted by an unexpected welcoming party: a stoat, whom they named Randall. The team were heading to Kaffeklubben Island, also known as Inuit Qeqertaat, off the northern tip of Greenland, about 440 miles from the North Pole, when Randall emerged from a cairn of rocks, showing no fear as he went to investigate them. (Photo by Jeff Kerby/Magnus News)

A blue crab, a highly invasive alien species, is seen at Lio Piccolo during the reforestation day on April 05, 2025 in Venice, Italy. The island of Lio Piccolo in the northern lagoon of Venice is being replanted with 16,000 new trees that will protect the salt marsh ecosystem that is fundamental to the natural health of Venice and the lagoon by WOWnature project, an Etifor initiative. (Photo by Simone Padovani/Getty Images)

People smoke marijuana in front of the Brandenburg Gate during the 'Smoke-In' event in Berlin, Germany, Monday, April 1, 2024. Starting 1 April, Germany has legalised cannabis for personal use. As per the new law, Adults aged 18 and over will be allowed to carry up to 25 grams of cannabis for their own consumption. (Photo by Ebrahim Noroozi/AP Photo)

In more “raccoons are getting more like us” news, a drunk raccoon was found in a liquor store in Virginia, US in the first decade of December 2025. The animal had got into the shop via some loose ceiling tiles, knocked bottles of spirits off the shelves, lapped up the contents and passed out in the toilets. Once it had sobered up, it was released back into the wild – no doubt with a crashing hangover. (Photo by AP Photo)

Soldiers take a selfie on the plateform at a metro station in Ho Chi Minh City on December 22, 2024. Thousands of selfie-taking Ho Chi Minh City residents crammed into train carriages on December 22, as the traffic-clogged business hub celebrated the opening of its first-ever metro line after years of delays. (Photo by Nhac Nguyen/AFP Photo)

The Perseid Meteor Shower seen over The Scorhill Stone Circle in Dartmoor, Devon on August 2, 2016. (Photo by John Baker/SWNS.com)