Try not to laugh at these 10 best Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023 winners

"I come from a land down under!"

Photo by Jason Moore/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023 Jason Moore Perth Australia Title: Air Guitar Roo Description: I was driving past a mob of Western Grey Kangaroos feeding in an open field that was filled with attractive yellow flowers. I had my camera with me, so I stopped to grab a few photos. I suddenly noticed this individual adopt a humorous pose - to me it looks like he's practising strumming on his Air Guitar. Animal: Western Grey Kangaroo Location of shot: Perth, Australia

James Cutmore

Published: November 23, 2023 at 12:01 am

You know what we should see more of? Photobombing kangaroos. That’s our primary conclusion after guffawing at all the whimsical winners of the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023

The highly commended cheeky ‘roo (which you can see below) is joined by many other animals caught in moments they’d rather forget. These include a white-winged dove flying straight into a tree, a very moody owl, and a long-tailed macaque monkey posing like Kate Winslet on a Titanic sofa. There really is something for everyone.

But the funniest animal of the year? Another kangaroo, this one seemingly rocking out and playing a spot of air guitar. The image, taken by Jason Moore, beat off some serious competition from over 5,000 entries from photographers from around the world.

Here are some of the winners and our top picks from this year's Comedy Wildlife Awards.

Highly commended – Monday blahs

Owl looks tired and depressed — This great grey owl (Strix nebulosa) spent most of the afternoon posing majestically and looking wise. However, during stretches they would slump and give a look of 'Is Monday over yet?' Photographed at Salt Lake City, Grand Teton National Park, USA. Photo by John Blumenkamp/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023.

Highly commended – Boing

Kangroo looks shocked — Taken at Westerfolds Park, a beautiful and surprisingly wild pocket of land in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Australia, famous for its kangaroo population. The mob was enjoying some morning sunshine when this joey decided to get silly and try his hand at boxing. Photo by Lara Mathews/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023

Highly commended – Snowball

bird looks like a snowball — A grouse looks more like a snowball in this image taken at Spitzbergen, Svalbard. Photo by Jacques Poulard/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023

Highly commended – The happy turtle

Turtle with dragon fly on nose seems like its smiling — This swamp turtle is surprised and seems to smile at the dragonfly resting on its nose. Photographed at Jezreel Valley, Israel. Photo by Tzahi Finkelstein/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023

Highly commended – That wasn't there yesterday

Bird seems to fly into tree — A white-winged dove appears to fly head-on into a cholla cactus skeleton. Photographed at Buckeye, Arizona, USA. Photo by Wendy Kaveney/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023

Highly commended – Rainforest dandy

Monkey lies down on side and plays with tail — This picture was taken in the monkey forest in Ubud, Bali. This place is a crazy place where monkeys such as this long-tailed macaque (Macaca fascicularis) seem to be in charge. Photo by Delphine Casimir/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023

Junior category winner & People's choice winner – Dispute

bird appears to point away from other birds stood on tree — A young greenfinch (Chloris chloris) seems to be having a heated argument with its parents. Photographed at Bialowieza forest, Poland. Photo by Jacek Stankiewicz/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023

Creatures of the air category winner – Unexpected plunge

Bird dives headfirst into water — An unusual and almost miserable end of a perfect moment, as a striated heron (Butorides striata) tries to catch a fish at the Zimanga Private Game Reserve, South Africa. Photo by Vittorio Ricci/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023

Creatures under the water category winner – Otter ballerina

Otter appears to trip while looking like ballerina — A smooth-coated otter is either doing a spot of ballet or tripping over, in this image taken in Singapore. Photo by Otter Kwek/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023

Overall winner – Air guitar roo

kangaroo plays air guitar — This western grey kangaroo is having fun playing some air guitar. Photographed in Perth, Australia. Photo by Jason Moore/The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2023

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Picture Editor, BBC Science Focus

James Cutmore is the picture editor of BBC Science Focus Magazine. He has worked on the magazine and website for over a decade, telling compelling science stories through the use of striking imagery. He holds a degree in Fine Art, and has been nominated for the British Society of Magazine Editors Talent Awards, being highly commended in 2020. His main areas of interest include photography that highlights positive technology and the natural world. For many years he was a judge for the Wellcome Trust's image competition, as well as judging for the Royal Photographic Society.