Bluey ballon flies as Spirit of America cheerleaders paricipate in the 96th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., November 24, 2022. (Photo by Andrew Kelly/Reuters)

Commended. In late May, about a quarter of a million snow geese arrive from North America to nest on Wrangel Island, in northeastern Russia. They form the world's largest breeding colony of snow geese. Photographer Sergey Gorshkov spent two months on the remote island photographing the unfolding dramas. Arctic foxes take advantage of the abundance of eggs, caching surplus eggs for leaner times. But a goose (here the gander) is easily a match for a fox, which must rely on speed and guile to steal eggs. “The battles were fairly equal”, notes Sergey, “and I only saw a fox succeed in grabbing an egg on a couple of occasions, despite many attempts”. Surprisingly, “the geese lacked any sense of community spirit”, he adds, “and never reacted when a fox harassed a neighboring pair nesting close by”. (Photo by Sergey Gorshkov/Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer)

A team of female cadets takes part in a tug-of-war competition at Budyonny Military Academy of the Signal Corps in St Petersburg, Russia on March 7, 2021. (Photo by Peter Kovalev/TASS/Profimedia)

A rooster is seen with the Zigana Mountain Pass, an important road route connecting the Eastern Black Sea region to Eastern Anatolia at an altitude of 2,050 meters, and the surrounding high areas after effective snowfall has occurred intermittently on October 23, 2024 in Trabzon, Turkiye. (Photo by Hakan Burak Altunoz/Anadolu via Getty Images)

A Siberian eagle owl, which can grow up to 71cm tall, is among a collection of 60 birds of prey at SMJ Falconry near Oxenhope, West Yorkshire, England. (Photo by Charlotte Graham)

A tourist's umbrella blows upside down as she covers from the heavy rain and high winds, while she tours the city centre, as storm Konrad hits Spain, Portugal and France, in Ronda, Spain, on March 13, 2025. (Photo by Jon Nazca/Reuters)

Two Afghan children stand amid piles of garbage next to their home, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, April 18, 2022. (Photo by Ebrahim Noroozi/AP Photo)

Visitors dressed as frogs walk along a popular street lined with bars, in Beijing, Friday, May 5, 2023. (Photo by Ng Han Guan/AP Photo)