In one of the planet’s most desolate and harsh terrains, the Altai Mountains which run from Siberia in Russia down to Mongolia’s Gobi Desert, hunting with eagles is currently only practiced by a handful of Kyrgyz and Kazakhs. This form of falconry, the practice of hunting with the aid of birds of prey, can be traced back as far as 4,000 years in Central Asia. Here: after a successful hunt, a proud hunter rewards his eagle by feeding it the lungs of the prey, which is considered the most highly prized part of the animal. (Photo by Tariq Zaidi/The Washington Post)

A Naga man carries fish in his teeth after it was stunned by dynamite, which fishermen threw in a creek between Donhe and Lahe township, in the Naga Self-Administered Zone in northwest Myanmar December 27, 2014. (Photo by Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters)

Kazakh nomads have been grazing their livestock in Mongolia for hundreds of years. Fascinated by the bond between hunter and eagle, photographer Palani Mohan has spent the last few years documenting the burkitshi. Mohan's photos of the landscape, isolation of the hunt, and most of all the trusting relationship between man and bird, convey the importance that the eagle plays in their lives. (Photo by Palani Mohan)

A still image taken from a video shows a tamed golden eagle soaring during a traditional hunting contest outside the village of Kaynar in Almaty region, Kazakhstan on December 9, 2019. (Photo by Pavel Mikheyev/Reuters)

Santa Claus greets a child during a visit to residents of the slum of Petare in Caracas, Venezuela, December 11, 2016. (Photo by Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters)

A Nativity scene is seen at the window of a house in the medieval mountain village of Luceram as part of Christmas holiday season, France, December 15, 2016. Luceram presents more than 450 creches (Nativity scenes) from the tiny to the huge yearly in December as part of the Circuit des Creches. (Photo by Eric Gaillard/Reuters)

A skydiver dressed as Santa Claus prepares to leap out of a plane as 155 tandem skydivers set a new Guinness World Record over eight hours, over the Australian city of Wollongong, December 17, 2016. (Photo by Jason Reed/Reuters)

A reveler and a child street vendor pose for a photo during the Banda de Ipanema Carnival parade in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, January 31, 2015. Rio's over-the-top Carnival is the highlight of the year for many local residents. Hundreds of thousands of merrymakers are beginning to take to the streets in open-air “blocos” parties. (Photo by Silvia Izquierdo/AP Photo)