PHOTO This year’s most popular wildlife photos

The 2022 competition at the Natural History Museum in London is already underway. At the Natural History Museum, London’s Wildlife Photographer Of The Year 2022 competition is in its 58th year. The competition has released some of the highly commended images to be featured in this year’s exhibition and there are some stunning shots.

Polar Frame, by Dmitry Kokh, taken on the island of Koliuchin, Chukotka, Russia

Dmitry Kokh’s images of polar bears in an abandoned settlement went viral earlier this year, and it’s easy to see why. Kokh found the animals looking as if they ran the place, which was abandoned by humans in 1992.

The Octopus Case, by Samuel Sloss, taken in the Lembeh Strait, Sulawesi, Indonesia

This image was captured by Samuel Sloss, who saw an octopus hiding in a shell. At first, the octopus froze for a few seconds as a defense against Sloss’s arrival, but eventually felt confident enough to see what was going on outside.

The Right Look, by Richard Robinson, shot in Port Ross, Auckland Island, New Zealand

Whales are among the most intelligent animals on the planet and, as this photograph shows, are able to express their curiosity with their sideways eyes. This young whale, known as “tohorā” in Maori, is a protected species that was nearly hunted to extinction by European whalers in the 1800s.

Treefrog Pool Party, by Brandon Güell, taken on the Osa Peninsula, Puntarenas, Costa Rica.

A treefrog party. Brandon Güell was wading through murky waters when he came upon these partygoers, a bunch of frogs emitting sounds in chorus, looking for a mate.

Sloth Dilemma, by Suzi Eszterhas, taken in Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, Costa Rica.

Slow-moving sloths, like this brown-necked individual, when encountering city dogs, a scene captured by Suzi Eszterhas as she passed by with her camera.

Dipper Dispute, by Heikki Nikki, taken in Kuusamo, Northern Ostrobothnia, Finland.

Two birds, in the middle of a most… heated argument.