A brown bear cub by the Khailyulya River in north-east Kamchatka, Russia on July 24, 2021. (Photo by Yuri Smityuk/TASS)

The snaps show photographers from around the world, who are willing to do just about anything for the perfect picture – whether that be tussling with a seal or withstanding a sharp shove from an angry gorilla. Other brave snappers can be seen getting up close and personal with leopards and great white sharks as they persist in getting the ultimate wildlife shot. Here: Christophe Vasselin gets pushed over by a gorilla. (Photo by Christophe Vasselin/Caters News Agency)

Michael Olivant, a Times reader, saw a chance to contribute when a Dalmatian pelican landed on his wife’s head at Lake Kerkini in northern Greece in the first decade of February 2025. (Photo by Michael Olivant/The Times)

A brown bear is checked by foreign veterinaries and local staff members at the Four Paws Bear Sanctuary in Pristina, on May 9, 2014. (Photo by Hazir Reka/Reuters)

A dog rides a wave while competing during the 5th Annual Surf Dog competition at Huntington Beach, California, on September 29, 2013. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown/AFP Photo)

A Tampa Bay Buccaneers cheerleader during the second quarter of an NFL preseason football game against the Cleveland Browns Friday, August 26, 2016, in Tampa, Fla. (Photo by Jason Behnken/AP Photo)

A brown capuchin monkey holds a fruit in the Botanic Garden of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 5, 2013. (Photo by Pablo Porciuncula/AFP Photo)

A Kamchatka Brown Bear cub eats frozen fruits during a Christmas feeding session at Hagenbecks zoo in Hamburg, northern Germany on December 5, 2014. (Photo by Fabian Bimmer/Reuters)