The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world
Week in wildlife in pictures: a strolling pelican, a venomous newt and a psychedelic swamphen
Week in wildlife in pictures: roving parrots, rabid seals and a prickly pest | Environment
A hedgehog curls up in a garden in Rolleston on the outskirts of Christchurch, New Zealand. As hedgehogs have no natural predators in New Zealand, they are considered a pest because they kill a variety of insects, lizards, and ground-nesting chicks, reducing biodiversity. In Europe, however, hedgehogs are now listed as “near threatened” after a decline in numbers of at least 30% over the past decade across much of their range
‘Things are truly scary’: the divided states of America
Michael Dressel was born in Berlin but spent four decades living and working in the US. As the election looms, he talks us through his new book capturing a nation in crisis
Week in wildlife in pictures: jaguar cuddles, a supermarket cockatoo and a seal in Canary Wharf | Environment
A female jaguar named Patricia with her cub, Makala, take a dip at Encontro das Águas State Park, Mato Grosso, Brazil. The tropical wetland there, called the pantanal, is home to one of the world’s largest jaguar populations, although it is threatened by wildfires
Photograph: Sergio Moraes/Reuters
Week in wildlife in pictures: happy elephants, a tiny koala and baboons taking liberties | Environment
An orphaned koala joey named Ajooni being fed by wildlife caregiver Emma Meadows in Sydney, Australia. There are between 95,000 and 524,000 koalas left in the country, possibly down from millions before European settlement. Expanding cities, land clearance and the spread of chlamydia are all devastating the populations of one of the country’s most iconic animals
Photograph: Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images
Week in wildlife in pictures: a diva beaver, 100 hungry raccoons and the fattest bear | Environment
Invasion of the trash bandits … just a few of the 100 raccoons that surrounded a woman’s home in Poulsbo, Washington, US. She had been feeding a small number, but “somehow, the word got out in raccoon land and they all showed up to her house expecting a meal,” a spokesperson for the sherriff’s office said. They sent deputies to help the woman, who was frightened to leave her home, since raccoons can be aggressive
Wildlife photographer of the year 2024 winners â in pictures | Environment
Selected from a record-breaking 59,228 entries from 117 countries and territories, the winners of the Natural History Museumâs prestigious wildlife photographer of the year competition have been announced, with an exhibition opening on Friday 11 October. The Canadian marine conservation photojournalist Shane Gross was awarded wildlife photographer of the year 2024 for his image of tadpoles, The Swarm of Life, captured while snorkelling through lily pads in Cedar Lake on Vancouver Island, British Columbia
Comedy wildlife photography awards 2024
A light-hearted look at wildlife with a selection of finalists from the Nikon Comedy Wildlife awards. A winner will be announced on 10 December
Week in wildlife : a rare blue frog, a cheeky heron and climbing bears
The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world
On These Magic Shores: exploring spaces for childrenâs play â in pictures | Environment
The photographer Tamsyn Warde explores spaces in which children play in Hampshire, UK, examining how and where they play and where play belongs in their lives. Spontaneous play is child-led and sparked by their own imaginations and interests â and this kind of play evolves naturally when children have the opportunity, requiring time that is not dictated by an adult timetable, and freedom of an appropriate space close to home