Wild Animals Act Wacky!

Some of the world’s most hilarious animals are finalists in the 2024 Comedy Wildlife Awards.

This photo, called Stuck Squirrel, was taken by Milko Marchetti of Italy. It’s a finalist in the 2024 Comedy Wildlife Awards. Keep scrolling to see more finalists!

What’s the funniest animal of all? An annual contest called Comedy Wildlife Awards aims to answer that question. The contest invites photographers from all over the world to enter their silliest images of all kinds of animals, from ants to zebras. This year’s finalists have been announced—and the public gets to select one of the winners.

Here’s one of the entries in the video category.

The finalists include three videos and more than 40 images. Winners will be chosen in several categories, including mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, fish and other aquatic species, insects, and animal videos. There are also separate categories for photographers under age 16 and under age 25 and a portfolio category for collections of four related images.

This is one of the entries in the portfolio category.

While judges will select most of the winners, the public gets to select the People’s Choice Award winner through an online vote.

It will be a tough decision. The images that made the final round include a praying mantis that looks like it’s dancing, a squirrel that’s stuck head-first in a tree, and a hippopotamus wearing a garland of leaves on its head.

We’ll bring you a contest update in December, when the winners are scheduled to be announced. For now, click through the slideshow to check out some of the finalists!

Zebras stand together so it looks like they have a single head.

An otter lies on its back on the water with its paws together and its eyes closed as if it is praying.

A white seal lies on the sand with its paw up and appears to be smiling and laughing.

Three raccoons look out from an opening in a tree trunk and one seems to whisper something in another’s ear.

A monkey jumps in the air with one leg up and one arm up.

A mantis has both front legs up and the rear of its body is fanned out like a dancing costume.

Side view of a hippo with leaves on its head that look like a garland.

Very close up view of a frog looking into the camera.

An elephant seal looks like it is smiling at the camera with the ocean in the background.

A bear walks as her two cubs look like they are trying to climb onto her back.

© Sarosh Iodhi/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards; © Christine Haines/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards; © Ingo Hamann/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards; © Jan Piecha/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards; © Jörn Clausen/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards; © Andy Rouse/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards; © Jose Miguel Gallego Molina/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards; © Artur Stankiewicz/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards; © Kingston Tam/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards; © Gabriel Rojo/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards; © Alexander Fine/Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards

NEWS EXTRA!

Indigenous Peoples’ Day

October 14 is Indigenous Peoples’ Day in the United States. It’s a day to honor the history, the resilience, and the many cultures and traditions of Indigenous peoples. (In the United States, Indigenous peoples are also called American Indians or Native Americans.)

Indigenous Peoples’ Day is the second Monday in October, the same day as Columbus Day, which has been a federal holiday since 1937. One reason for this is to recognize that American Indians were in the Americas for thousands of years before Italian explorer Christopher Columbus landed there.

One way to observe Indigenous Peoples’ Day is to learn more about Indigenous peoples. There are hundreds of American Indian tribes in the United States. Each has its own history, culture, and traditions. So, where should the learning begin? You can start where you live. If you’re in the United States, find out which Indigenous peoples live or lived where you now live and learn about their history.

Fun Fact

The praying mantis (one of the animals featured among the Comedy Wildlife Photography Award finalists) has five eyes!

Fat Bear Week: The Results Are In

E. Johnston, M. Carenza, F. Jimenez, T. Carmack, C. Cravatta/U.S. National Park Service; Photo composite Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Here are the 12 bears that competed in this year’s Far Bear Week. Each bear has a number as part of its name.

If you’re a kid, autumn means back-to-school time. If you’re a bear, it means eating as much as possible before heading into a cozy den for hibernation. Since bears don’t eat or drink all winter, putting on weight during autumn is a matter of survival.

In Alaska’s Katmai National Park, the brown bears chow down on salmon, which is full of the fat and nutrients they need. The rangers at Katmai National Park celebrate these survival instincts each autumn during Fat Bear Week. In the time leading up to the contest, the rangers select several bears to compete. During Fat Bear Week, the public votes for their favorites in a series of matchups until the winner is chosen.

This year’s Fat Bear Week took place October 2–8. The contest came down to a matchup between 128 Grazer and 32 Chunk—the same final matchup as 2023.

And the winner is…

M. Carenza/U.S. National Park Service

128 Grazer, who won Fat Bear Week in 2023, took the trophy again this year!

How Well Do You Know Bears?

© byrdyak, Praxis Creative, troutnut, MrPreecha, Uryadnikov Sergey, Andrew/stock.adobe.com, © Mark Newman—The Image Bank/Getty Images, © Birdiegal717/Dreamstime.com; Animation Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Did you know that there are eight bear species? Check them out in the photos above!

Where in the world do bears live? Which bear species is the largest? Find the answers to these questions and more at Britannica!

Word of the Day

horseplay

Part of speech:

noun

Definition:

: rough or loud play : energetic and noisy playful activity

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