Cosplayers at China Joy 2023, the city’s Digital Entertainment Expo & Conference in Shanghai, China on July 30, 2023. (Photo by Costfoto/NurPhoto/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

A woman wades through floodwaters next to rescue workers after remnants of Typhoon Doksuri brought rains and floods in Beijing, China on August 2, 2023. (Photo by Tingshu Wang/Reuters)

The Villarica volcano erupts near Pucon, Chile, early Tuesday, March 3, 2015. The Villarica volcano erupted Tuesday around 3 a.m. local time (06:00 GMT), according to the National Emergency Office, which issued a red alert and ordered evacuations. (Photo by Aton Chile/AP Photo)

A man sits on a park bench in a flooded park as the Cape Fear River rises above its usual height in Wilmington, North Carolina, September 14, 2018. (Photo by Jonathan Drake/Reuters)

Youth category winner: Symphony No 5 by Giacomo Redaelli (Italy). (Photo by Giacomo Redaelli/2019 Nature Photographer of the Year)

Revellers take part in the Children's Day parade of the Notting Hill Carnival in London, Britain, 28 August 2016. The street festival celebrates this year its 52nd anniversary and more than a million people are expected to attend on 28 and 29 August. (Photo by Will Oliver/EPA)

Revelers dressed as Santa Claus or in festive costumes arrive for the start of SantaCon 2018 in New York City December 8, 2018. SantaCon is an annual event where people dress as Santa Claus or other Christmas characters parade in several cities around the world. (Photo by Timothy A. Clary/AFP Photo)

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)