The results are in and the winner of this year’s funniest wildlife photo goes to Milko Marchetti for his very chuckle-worthy shot of a red squirrel with its head firmly embedded in a tree. Marchetti’s shot was selected as the overall winner and winner of the Mammal category in the 2024 Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards – a competition that focuses on the lighter side of animal photography.
The winning shot was selected from a pool of 9,000 images – the highest number of entries on record in the award’s ten-year history. The top 45 or so images were scrutinised (and laughed over) by a group of expert judges, with Marchetti’s photo sneaking through as the ultimate winner in a hotly contested competition.
“I have taken many, many photographs of squirrels, in many situations over the years in Italy,” Marchetti explained, “but this one struck me as really funny and such a strange position, because it is that exact moment when the squirrel is detaching its back legs from the trunk to enter its hide. Whenever I show this image at the nature seminars at my local photography club, the audience always explode with raucous laughter, so I had to enter it!”
Stefan Maier, Senior General Manager of Marketing at Nikon Europe, had this to say about the winning shot: “We are thrilled to celebrate Milko Marchetti’s outstanding achievement in the Nikon Comedy Photography Awards 2024. His image, ‘Stuck Squirrel,’ brilliantly captures the playful and unpredictable moments that make nature so enchanting.”
Founded by professional photographers Paul Joynson-Hicks and Tom Sullam, the competition aims to inspire through comedy by showcasing the funnier side of the natural world and raising awareness about conservation. “This year’s competition received a record number of entries, each one a testament to the power of photography in evoking emotion,” says Maier. “We look forward to continuing to inspire the next generation of wildlife photographers through these wonderful awards.”
Here’s a taste of some of the other winners and Highly Commended images:
