Best of 2016 in Pictures: The most captivating wildlife photographs of the year

Wildlife photography is a genre of photography which includes documentation of different types of animals in their natural habitat.

Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
Bjorn, aged 5, smiles as he poses with a Owl butterfly during an event to launch the Sensational Butterflies exhibition at the Natural History Museum in London, Britain. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A rat's head rests as it is constricted in an opening in the bottom of a garbage can in Brooklyn, New York, October 18, 2016 Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A polar bear is seen at an aquarium in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China, July 27, 2016. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A polar bear is seen at an aquarium in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China, July 27, 2016. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A golden pheasant is seen at Hangzhou Safari Park in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
Riders and their horses of the Spanish Riding School of Vienna perform a dress rehearsal for the media at the SSE Arena in London, Britain November 10, 2016 Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A 23-day-old hamadryas baboon plays with a stuffed toy at Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens after the baboon, according to a zoo doctor, was abandoned by its mother after its birth on April 4, in the southern city of Mysuru, India, April 28, 2016. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A sloth holds on to the post of a traffic barrier on a highway, in this handout photo provided by Ecuador's Transit Commission, in Quevedo, Ecuador. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A giant panda cub falls from the stage while 23 giant pandas born in 2016 are seen on a display at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Chengdu, Sichuan province, China September 29, 2016. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A cat with a "stegosaurus spine" design cut into its fur is seen next to a dog at a pet shop, in Tainan, Taiwan. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
Julian Assange's cat sits at the window of Ecuador's embassy as prosecutor Ingrid Isgren from Sweden interviews Assange in London, Britain November 14, 2016 Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
Thousands of starlings fly in a 'murmuration' as they return to roost at dusk near Charlton-on-Otmoor, southern England, February 11, 2016. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A seagull flies past the Houses of Parliament in central London, Britain November 2, 2016. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A tomtit bird flies past a squirrel running on a fence after a snowfall in a park in Almaty, Kazakhstan, January 12, 2016. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A banded mongoose plays with a Halloween pumpkin at a zoo in Chongqing, China, October 29, 2016. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A polar bear cub snuggles up against her mother Valeska, in their enclosure at Bremerhaven's (Bremen's) Zoo by the Sea, Germany. Reuters
Most captivating animal pictures of 2016
A woman holds a hedgehog at the Harry hedgehog cafe in Tokyo, Japan, April 5, 2016. Reuters

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