International photographic competition, which runs in association with the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, London, awards special prize for the best close-up images. Here: Winner – Mayflies by Petar Sabol, Goričan, Croatia. (Photo by Sabol Petar/International Garden Photographer of the Year)

Run by the Society of German Nature Photographers (Gesellschaft Deutscher Tierfotografen), the prestigious annual contest celebrates the best wildlife photography from members in Germany. Here: Landscapes, second place: Florian Smit, “Rainforest” (Danum valley, Borneo). (Photo by Florian Smit/2019 GDT Nature Photographer of the Year)

Mackenzie Brown from the USA warms up on stage prior the final ofthe 47th Prix de Lausanne in Lausanne, Switzerland, 09 February 2019. Launched in 1973, the Prix de Lausanne is an international dance competition for young dancers. The best dancers will be awarded with scholarships granting free tuition in a world-renowned dance school or dance company. (Photo by Valentin Flauraud/EPA/EFE)

Racegoers in attendance on Ladies Day at Ascot Racecourse on June 21, 2018 in Ascot, England. Ladies Day is the biggest day in the racing calendar and brings with it all the glitz and glamour as those attending don their best outfits. Ascot Racecourse is steeped in Royal history, first founded by Queen Anne in 1711, with the first race in her honour held on August 11, 1711. This year’s Royal Ascot began Tuesday, June 19, with races every day until Saturday, June 23. (Photo by South West News Service)

In one of the best collaborations this blog has seen in ages, professional illustrator Mica Angela Hendricks has been collaborating with her 4-year-old daughter on a series of wonderful drawings that pass back and forther between mother and daugher until reaching an always unexpected final form. Each drawing begins with Hendricks drawing a detailed retro-ish head, after which her daughter snatches away the sketchbook to create rudimentary body (or animal!) parts as well as other random details. Afterward Hendricks goes back in to polish things up a bit and behold: dinosaur women, slug ladies, and beaver astronauts are born.

With more than 40,000 followers on Twitter and 26,400 fans on Vine, it looks like Marutaro the hedgehog from Japan is one of the most popular hedgehogs on the Internet. And as his owner keeps on posting Marutaro’s pictures online daily, Marutaro’s popularity continues to grow. There are hundreds of cute photographs and videos of this little fellow, but the ones with little paper cut-out faces are probably the cutest. As Marutaro lies on his back, his owner gives him a variety of silly expressions and smiles. The 20 best of them will definitely boost your mood!

In June, Mallory Gaudet picked up a little ginger kitten on the street and took him home. Mallory worried that the baby will not be able to get along with her ​​two other pets – ferrets, and they will hurt him. But it turned out that the new member of the family, named Ned, could get used to this neighborhood very fast. Moreover – these three animals became really best friends. Now kitten and ferrets play, eat and sleep all together. But the most touching thing is when Ned “washes” the ferrets. Interspecific and intergeneric animals’ friendship – is a rare phenomenon. But ginger kitten and two of his fellows break all the stereotypes.