Once a year, the world’s wildlife photographers set aside majesty and go looking for something else: the moment an animal looks like it just said something it shouldn’t have, at a volume.
The Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards has named its 2026 finalists, and the numbers show how far this idea has come: more than 10,000 entries from photographers in 112 countries, the largest turnout yet. Forty images made the final cut. Co-founder Tom Sullam says the contest uses humor to build empathy for wildlife, a case that’s hard to argue with once you’ve seen the pictures.
A few of the contenders
Tanner Mansell’s “Spicy Orangutan,” shot in Borneo, shows an orangutan that appears to be giving the middle finger. We have no comment. We have many comments, but none we can print. Barbara Seiberl-Stark’s “Push Over” catches a lioness seemingly knocking over her cub during play, and in “The Leap He’ll Never Forget,” David Lee photographed a primate that looks like it’s just realized the leap was a mistake.
Some of the entries are tiny. Thong Duy Vu’s “Out of Water” has a small bird resting upside down in a pink petal, and Jan Wittmer’s “Angry Bird” features a tiny bird with a perfectly irritated expression, like it just got a Monday email. Lee Frost’s “Nature’s Window” shows a small insect that seems to wave through a nibbled leaf.
Elsewhere, Scott Suriano’s “Morning Calisthenics” has a brown bear rolling on its back, Robert Gondek’s “The Ground Is Lava” has a chameleon crossing a hot surface on its hind legs, and Robert Nairn’s “Ballet Dancer” balances a bird of prey on one leg with its wings open. Diego Perez’s “Sexy Mantis” poses a praying mantis behind a leaf, Eigil B Jensen’s “Fish-headed bird” shows a heron that appears to have a fish for a head and Dirk Koster’s “The different one” features three giraffes, one of which appears to have green hair thanks to a tree behind it. The lead image, Kevin Lohman’s “Are You Kidding Me,” catches a squirrel leaping toward a juvenile owl, and the owl’s face says everything.
When do we find out?
The winners are due to be announced on December 8. In the meantime, the contest runs a People’s Choice vote, so you can pick your favorite and be wrong in public.