Respect, Kronotsky nature reserve, Russia. The photographer’s cat, Ryska – her name means little lynx in Russian – stands outside their cabin and with aggressive posturing warns off a fox. In winter, foxes would regularly visit the cabin searching for food. If one peered in at the window, possible when the snow was deep, Ryska would sit on the other side, fur raised, and growl. When outside, she would hold her ground. The foxes were not always frightened and so encounters could be a sort of dance. (Photo by Igor Shpilenok/Unforgettable Behaviour/NHM)

Mother hen chicken with cute tiny baby chicks all protected beneath her wings keeping warm outdoors only their 12 legs visible poking out the bottom outside. (Photo by Matthew Troke/iStockphoto via Getty Images)

A tern chased away a ghost crab that was threatening its chicks at a beach near Fort Myers, Florida in the last decade of June 2023, before feeding them with freshly caught fish. (Photo by Judy Rogero/Solent News)

Andrew Parkinson, animal behaviour category winner: Crepuscular Contentment, Derbyshire. “In 15 years of working with badgers I’ve never seen a badger sit out in the open to have a scratch. I was sat concealed behind a tree and downwind so it was especially nice that the badger had his back to me, demonstrating just how inconspicuous and inconsequential my presence was”. (Photo by Andrew Parkinson/British Wildlife Photography Awards 2017)

A man walks with a Cyberdog, produced by Chinese tech company Xiaomi, on February 19, 2022 in Beijing, China.The quadruped robots, often owned by tech and robotic enthusiasts, do not have a specific purpose so far, but the open source nature of the robots could make them suitable for several applications in the future. (Photo by Andrea Verdelli/Getty Images)

The Malabar Giant squirrel – double the size of their grey relatives and measuring up to 36 inches (91.5 cm) from head to tail – lives deep in the forests of India. The athletic animals can leap an incredible 20 feet (6 m) between trees. Photographer Kaushik Vijayan, 39, snapped the animals in their native habit to produce these stunning images. Kaushik, from Kerala State, India, said: “Up until that point I had never heard about a squirrel like that or seen one. The sight was an absolute feast for my eyes. The squirrels fascinated me and I got excited to capture this beauty on my camera”. (Photo by Kaushik Vijayan/South West News Service)

A male green anole lizard flares his throat fan in a backyard in Cary, North Carolina on April 27, 2021. This pink section is actually a thin flap of skin that hangs down below the green anole's throat. Anoles are renowned for their displays in which they do pushups, bob their heads up and down, and unfurl their colorful dewlaps. The male anole uses it for two primary purposes: to protect his territory and attract a mate. (Photo by Bob Karp/ZUMA Press Wire/Alamy Live News)

A pair of red junglefowl fight over territory in Pasir Ris Park, Singapore in the second decade of February 2025. (Photo by Liew Tong Leng/Solent News)