This is the moment a diver appears to shake hands with a giant 52ft whale. The divers were just metres away when one humpback whale – which weighs 36,000kg – extends its giant flipper in a peaceful manner. (Photo by Masa Ushioda/SeaPics/Solent News & Photo Agency)

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)

Jo-Anne McArthur’s book of photographs puts the spotlight on ethics of zoos around the world. Accompanied by essays by Born Free Foundation’s Virginia McKenna and philosopher Lori Gruen, the images and stories are also shared online through “A Year of Captivity”. Here: Asian Elephant, Denmark, 2016. (Photo by Jo-Anne McArthur/Born Free Foundation/The Guardian)

National Geographic has created “Air, Land & Sea: the 50 greatest wildlife photographs” exhibition. Here: CT4 Crocodile cave on the Salamat river. Set up with Nathan Williamson last chip rain came while we were with the nomads. (Photo by Michael Nichols/National Geographic)

Teeming with images of spectacular underwater scenes from around the world, Call of the Blue is the culmination of a five-year project by the photographer and ocean conservationist Philip Hamilton. This groundbreaking book includes contributions from acclaimed scientists and ocean “guardians”, who reveal what drove them to answer the call of the blue. (Photo by Philip Hamilton/The Guardian)

Belgium's Crown Princess Elisabeth poses with dancers and youth after a ceremony on the occasion of her 18th birthday, outside the Royal Palace in Brussels, Belgium on October 25, 2019. (Photo by Yves Herman/Reuters)

A mother bear acting as a taxi for her cubs and they jump on for a piggyback. Two sloth bear cubs fighting for the best place on mum's back as she carries them across Coonoor, India in July 2022. (Photo by Ranganathan Vasudevan/Media Drum Images)

A golden huddle by Minqiang Lu, China. Two females and a male golden snub-nosed monkey huddle together to keep warm in the extreme cold. Threatened by forest loss and fragmentation, this endangered species is confined to central China. Restricted to living high up in the temperate forests, these monkeys – here in the Qinling mountains in Shaanxi province – feed mostly in the trees, on leaves, bark, buds and lichen. In heavy wind and snow, Minqiang walked up the mountain carrying his equipment. He stayed for half an hour in temperatures of –10C opposite the tree where the group was huddled before achieving this eye-level composition. (Photo by Minqiang Lu/Wildlife Photographer of the Year)