Yes, the Comedy Wildlife Photo Finalists Are as Hilarious as You Would Expect

Photographers from around the world submitted thousands of wildlife images for this year’s award competition

By Joseph De Avila
Updated Oct. 24, 2022
Tap story

A soaring squirrel, a leaping owl and a winking fox are among the images competing in this year’s Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards, an annual competition for amusing wildlife photos submitted by professional and amateur photographers from around the world.

This proboscis monkey gawked in amazement as the photographer cruised by on the Kinabatangan River in Borneo.

Andy Evans/Comedy Wildlife 2022

This 3 month old lion cub in Tanzania took a tumble attempting to climb down a tree.

Jennifer Hadley/Comedy Wildlife 2022

The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards shortlisted 40 images for this year’s competition, including these sassy penguins on the Falkland Islands.

Jennifer Hadley/Comedy Wildlife 2022

This grey triggerfish near the Azores got up close and personal with the photographer.

Arturo Telle Thiemann/Comedy Wildlife 2022

This smiling monkey was photographed in the city of Abha in Saudi Arabia where monkeys gather and steal food from people.

Ahmed Alahmed/Comedy Wildlife 2022

These wallabies played on the beach in Queensland, Australia.

Michael Eastwell/Comedy Wildlife 2022

These playful meerkats were photographed at a game reserve in South Africa.

Emmanuel Do Linh San/Comedy Wildlife 2022

Professional photographers Paul Joynson-Hicks and Tom Sullam co-founded the awards in 2015 to highlight the humorous side of wildlife photography.

Andrew Peacock/Comedy Wildlife 2022

The variety of humorous photos collected by these photographers “makes you smile and wonder at the incredible animals that are on this earth with us, and we love that about the competition,” Mr. Sullam said in a statement.

Dave Shaffer/Comedy Wildlife 2022

This little squirrel in the Zhuque National Forest Park in China stuck its tongue out after eating a treat.

Lee Zhengxing/Comedy Wildlife 2022

These lappet-faced vultures showed off their wings in South Africa

Saverio Gatto/Comedy Wildlife 2022

This American red fox turned around and gave a wink moments before disappearing into the trees in San Jose, Calif.

Kevin Lohman/Comedy Wildlife 2022

This duckling waddled across a turtle-covered log among the wetlands in Kirkland, Wash.

Ryan Sims/Comedy Wildlife 2022

This fledgling owl was scampering across the ground in the Judean Lowlands in Israel.

Shuli Greenstein/Comedy Wildlife 2022

These wild monkeys were playing near a temple in Cambodia.

Federica Vinci/Comedy Wildlife 2022

This mommy owl wasn't too happy when a baby owl tried squeezing in the same nest hole in tree located in a park in Largo, Fla.

Mark Schocken/Comedy Wildlife 2022

The public can vote on their favorite image at www.comedywildlifephoto.com until Nov. 27. Winners will be announced in December.

Valtteri Mulkahainen/Comedy Wildlife 2022

Cover image: Alex Pansier/Comedy Wildlife 2022
Produced by Tania Colon