The Best Animal Photos of 2012
-
1 of 30
Malachy, a Pekingese, sits in a trophy after being named best in show at the 136th annual Westminster Kennel Club dog show in New York on Feb. 14.
-
2 of 30
A Thai buddhist monk talks on a radio while walking past tigers at a tiger buddhist temple in Karnchanaburi, Thailand, on April 24. Thailand is one of just 13 countries hosting fragile tiger populations and is a hub of international smuggling.
-
3 of 30
A bear falls from a tree after being tranquilized by wildlife officials at the University of Colorado on April 26.
-
4 of 30
A fresh shaven alpaca looks on as its stands in a pasture at Alpaca-Land farm in Goeming, Austria, on April 29.
-
5 of 30
A goat eats leafs off of a branch at Chesapeake Montessori School in Annapolis, Md., on May 3. The goat is part of a herd that is rented out by Eco-Goats, a business that uses goats to help landowners clear invasive species and problem plants that have proven too tough for mowers, weed whackers and herbicides.
-
6 of 30
A woman displays her cat in a costume during a two-day cat and dog exhibition in Minsk, Belarus, on May 5.
-
7 of 30
A great blue heron comes in for a landing at a rookery at Carter Fields in North Andover, Mass., on May 9.
-
8 of 30
Women hold their dressed up dogs while waiting to enter the Texas Rangers ballpark for the "Bark in the Park" event on May 15.
-
9 of 30
A woman looks at an elk standing on a lawn in a residential area in eastern Moscow on May 16. An elk family got lost after wandering from a local park into a residential area.
-
10 of 30
White, a 3-year-old poodle, looks at visitors touring a pet fair in Bangkok on May 17.
-
11 of 30
A child poses for a family photo beside a Spot-Eye Cichlid fish at the Beijing Aquarium on May 30.
-
12 of 30
A young pig peers through a fence in Lofer, Austria, on June 13.
-
13 of 30
A five month old orphaned elephant called "Tembo" plays with his keeper who has nutured the elephant at Tony Fitzjohn's Mkomazi rhino sanctuary on June 19 in Tanzania.
-
14 of 30
A polar bear named Coldilocks sticks out her tongue to feel the cold sprinkling water at the Philadelphia Zoo on July 6.
-
15 of 30
A white lion cub rests before feeding time in the Yalta Zoo in Ukraine on July 17.
-
16 of 30
A panda cub, born on July 29, at the San Diego Zoo waits for his official name, Xiao Liwu, to be announced.
-
17 of 30
A young alpaca yawns while taking a rest in a pasture in Albany, Vt., on Sept. 12.
-
18 of 30
A California sea lion and a walrus kiss each other during a show at the Hakkeijima Sea Paradise aquarium-amusement park complex in Yokohama, Japan, on Sept. 16.
-
19 of 30
Female liliger cub Kiara, a hybrid between a lion and a ligress, plays at the Novosibirsk Zoo, in eastern Siberia on Sept. 19.
-
20 of 30
African penguins are fed sardines by staff on Sept. 20 at the South African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds after they were recently found covered in oil on Robben Island in Cape Town.
-
21 of 30
An elephant emerges behind a window in the elephant indoor pool at the Leipzig Zoo in Germany on Sept. 30.
-
22 of 30
Two Amur tiger twin cubs, also known as Siberian tigers, stand in front of a small pond during their first walk in the enclosure in the Leipzig Zoo in Germany on Sept. 30.
-
23 of 30
A fox runs through the garden of the chancellery in Berlin on Oct. 11.
-
24 of 30
A dog is groomed during the Pet South America fair in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Oct. 17.
-
25 of 30
A dog named Shaggy is handed from a National Guard truck on Oct. 31 after he was rescued from a flooded building after Superstorm Sandy in Hoboken, N.J.
-
26 of 30
A one-pound female lobster, known as a "split," was caught by a Massachusetts fisherman in October. Officials say such rare Halloween coloration is estimated to occur once in every 50 million lobsters.
-
27 of 30
The four time apnea world record holder, Pierre Frolla, holds his breath as he dives near a shark at the Aquarium of Paris on Nov. 11.
-
28 of 30
A retired circus elephant plays with a yoga ball at Hope Elephants, a not-for-profit rehabilitation and educational facility in Hope, Maine, on Nov. 13.
-
29 of 30
A man gets up close to an owl on display during a press conference on the upcoming "Horse and Hunting" trade fair in Germany on Nov. 20.
-
30 of 30
Therapy dog Chilly Pasternak from Richmond, Va., gets a pat from his owner Jake Pasternak on Dec. 20 in Newtown, Conn. Therapy dogs have been brought in from around the country to provide comfort to Newtown residents following the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
-
Nation
-
Heroic Oklahoma Tornado Rescues
-
3-D Printed Objects
-
Lap of Luxury: America’s Most Expensive Homes
-
The 2013 Billboard Music Awards
-
The 66th Cannes Film Festival
-
The 40th Anniversary of the Watergate Hearings
-
Wisconsin Wildfire Forces Evacuations
-
Obama Honors Fallen Officers at Police Memorial Service
-
Prince Harry Tours Superstorm Sandy Affected Areas
-
Famous Freemasons
-
New Orleans Mother's Day Shooting
-
Navy Launches First Drone From Aircraft Carrier
← prev -
-
Latest Galleries