Revealed: The 2024 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards Winners Including A Squirrel Stuck In A Tree, Cuddling Owls And A Sexy Hippo

A hilarious photo of a squirrel stuck in a tree has won the top prize at Nikon’s Comedy Wildlife Awards 2024.

The competition, which has been dubbed the ‘funniest and most popular photography competition in the world’, concluded last night.

This year, more than 9,000 photos were submitted, and the judges whittled them down to a shortlist of just 45 photos.

However, it was Milko Marchetti who was named the overall winner of this year’s competition for his photo, entitled ‘Stuck Squirrel’.

The hilarious photo shows a red squirrel entering a tree with its feet perpendicular to the trunk.

“I have taken many photos of squirrels in Italy over the years, in many situations,” Mr. Marchetti explains.

‘But I thought this one was really funny and such a strange position, because it’s that exact moment when the squirrel releases its hind legs from the trunk to crawl into its skin.

‘Whenever I show this image at my local photography club’s nature seminars, the audience always erupts in raucous laughter, so I had to get in!’

The jury explained that Mr Marchetti’s sculpture truly reflects the ‘enchanting’ aspect of nature.

Stefan Maier, Senior General Manager Marketing at Nikon Europe, said: ‘We are very pleased to celebrate Milko Marchetti’s outstanding performance at the Nikon Comedy Photography Awards 2024.

‘His image, ‘Stuck Squirrel’, brilliantly captures the playful and unpredictable moments that make nature so enchanting.

‘This year’s competition received a record number of entries, each a testament to the power of photography in evoking emotion.

‘We look forward to continuing to inspire the next generation of nature photographers with these wonderful prizes.’

As the winner, Mr Marchetti will receive a ‘once in a lifetime’ safari in the Masai Mara, plus a handmade trophy and photography bag.

In addition to Mr Marchetti, Nikon crowned nine other category winners, ten ‘Highly Commended’ winners and a Young Photographer Award.

In the Insects category, Jose Miguel Gallego Molina won for his image, titled “Mantis Flamenca,” while Eberhard Ehmke won the Reptiles and Amphibian Award for his image, “Frog in a Balloon.”

‘During a photo shoot at the pond I discovered this frog with its head in a bell. This looks like a tree clock,” Mr. Ehmke explained.

Damyan Petkov’s image ‘Whiskered Tern crash on landing’ was crowned winner in the Birds category, while a hilarious photo of a fish appearing to hunt a bald eagle won the Fish and Other Aquatic Species Award.

In the Under-16 category, Sarthakk Ranganadhan won for their photo of ‘cuddling owls’.

“Our parents always find a way to embarrass us, I think that goes for the spotted owls too,” they said.

‘It was a really funny sight to see two little owls trying to get some privacy while their little brood stood next to them with their eyes closed and grinning.’

Meanwhile, Kingston Tam won the Under-25 category for his image titled ‘Awkward smiley frog’.

The People’s Choice Award went to Tapani Linnanmaki for their photo ‘Shake ruffle rattle and roll’.

‘In the photo a sea eagle waves its feathers. The photo was taken using the Nikon Z9’s auto recording function,” they explained.

‘The camera is placed on top of the sea ice, on top of a bag of nuts at the level of the ice.

‘I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw this photo. There were more than ten funny poses and expressions in the photo series.’

Flynn Thaitanunde-Lobb won the Amazing Internet Portfolio Award for their series of images showing a squirrel with a stick.

Finally, Kevin Lohman won the Video Category Award for his video of a fox with the ‘zoomies’.

“A Red Fox couldn’t get enough of rolling on the frozen grass on a cold morning,” he said.

‘I had been watching this fox slowly walking across the grass when suddenly he got the zoomies like my dog ​​does after his bath.

“He started rolling around on the ice-covered grass, then sliding, then shaking off as if nothing had happened.”