Το National Geographic δημοσίευσε σε ένα άρθρο τις πιο δημοφιλείς φωτογραφίες που ανέβηκαν στον λογαριασμό του στο Instagram για το 2018.

Οι φωτογραφίες στο λογαριασμό @natgeo φυσικά και είναι από όλο τον πλανήτη, με τις πολικές αρκούδες, τους ρινόκερου, τους χιμπατζήδες και ουρακοτάγκους να κυριαρχούν.

Η πιο δημοφιλής εικόνα ανήκει στον @ladzinski και απεικονίζει το Super Blue Moon στο Κολοράντο.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Photo @ladzinski / Despite the northern front range of #Colorado being partly cloudy this morning, the #LunarEclipse still managed to peek out for a beautiful sighting. Today’s eclipse was a #SuperBlueBloodMoon and reached totality around 6:30 am, giving a fair amount of blue hour light to see the mountains as well. The mountains seen here are #MountMeeker and Colorado’s northern most 14,000 foot mountain, #LongsPeak.

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on Jan 31, 2018 at 7:42pm PST

Συγκινητική είναι η εικόνα του @amivitale, στην οποία ένας φροντιστής, ο Joseph Wachira, παρηγορεί τον τελευταίο αρσενικό Βόρειο λευκό ρινόκερο, με το όνομα Sudan, τις τελευταίες στιγμές της ζωής του. Στην τελική δεκάδα και λίγο πιο κάτω, ακόμα μία εικόνα του Sudan κατάφερε να συγκεντρώσει εκατομμύρια likes.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Photo by @amivitale With a heavy heart, I share this news and hope that Sudan’s legacy will awaken us to protect this magnificent and fragile planet. Yesterday, wildlife ranger Joseph Wachira, 26 comforted Sudan, the last living male Northern White Rhino left on this planet moments before he passed away. Sudan lived a long, healthy life at the conservancy after he was brought to Kenya from @safari_park_dvur_kralov in the #Czechrepublic in 2009. He died surrounded by people who loved him at @olpejeta after suffering from age-related complications that led to degenerative changes in muscles and bones combined with extensive skin wounds. Sudan has been an inspirational figure for many across the world. Thousands have trooped to Ol Pejeta to see him and he has helped raise awareness for rhino conservation. The two female northern white rhinos left on the planet are his direct descendants. Research into new Assisted Reproductive Techniques for large mammals is underway due to him. The impact that this special animal has had on conservation is simply incredible. And there is still hope in the future that the subspecies might be restored through IVF. In 2009, I had the privilege of following this gentle hulking creature on his journey from the snowy Dvur Krulov zoo in the Czech Republic to the warm plains of Kenya, when he was transported with three of his fellow Northern White Rhinos in a last ditch effort to save the subspecies. It was believed that the air, water, and food, not to mention room to roam, might stimulate them to breed—and the offspring would then be used to repopulate Africa. At the time, there were 8 Northern white rhinos alive, all in zoos. Today, we are witnessing the extinction of a species that had survived for millions of years but could not survive mankind. Follow @olpejeta and @amivitale to learn more what we can all do to #coexist. @natgeo @natgeocreative @olpejeta @kenyawildlifeservice @thephotosociety #SudanForever#WorthMoreAlive #OlPejetaRhinos #NorthernWhiteRhinos #protectrhinos #DontLetThemDisappear #rhinos #saverhinos #stoppoaching #kenya #northernkenya #africa #everydayafrica #photojournalism #amivitale #extinction

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on Mar 20, 2018 at 4:52am PDT

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Photo by @FransLanting The boundaries between apes and us became blurry when I saw Lana, a female bonobo, play with an infant not her own. She balanced it on her feet in a game every human parent can relate to. Compared with chimps, bonobo brains are more developed in areas assumed to be vital for emotions like feeling empathy and sensing distress in others. I worked with a captive bonobo community to document intimate behavior impossible to capture in the dense jungles of the Congo Basin, the only place where they occur in the wild. There may be fewer than 10,000 bonobos alive and their survival depends on our ability to apply the same kind of compassion to them that we cherish so much in ourselves. Follow me @FransLanting and @ChristineEckstrom for more images of bonobos that show how different they are from chimps and how close they are to us. @natgeotravel @natgeocreative @thephotosociety #BonoboConservationInitiative #Bonobos #Chimps #Apes #Play #Compassion #Empathy #Naturelovers #Wisdom

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on Mar 11, 2018 at 5:39pm PDT

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Photo by @FransLanting | When a young orangutan stands upright in a forest clearing it becomes easy to appreciate the similarities with humans—and the differences. Long arms enable them swing through the trees and their potbellies help them digest all that plant food. There is not much protein in their diet, but they can deal with that. What orangutans can’t cope with is the dramatic loss of their habitat and the assault on their infants for the illegal pet trade. This young male is one of many orangutans who end up in rehab centers where dedicated people try to give them a new lease on life after their traumatic experiences with humans. I will leave it to you what you find more compelling; his body parts or the outlook on life for orangutans as a species. Follow me @FransLanting to see more orangutans and learn about their plight. And Follow @ChristineEckstrom to see more video encounters of the animal kind. @World_Wildlife @WildAid @leonardodicapriofdn #Borneo #Orangutan #Family #Orphans #Endangered #Wildlife

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on Sep 6, 2018 at 10:56am PDT

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Photograph by @paulnicklen // I post pictures of fat bears, average-sized bears, well fed bears and when I find them, I post pictures of starving bears also. So, here is a fun moment of a healthy mom sharing her seal kill with her young cub. #followme on @paulnicklen to see the biggest polar bear I have ever seen. //#turning the tide with @sea_legacy #bear #polarbear #hunting #nature #naturelovers #adventure #family #love #instagood #picoftheday #beauty

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on Feb 11, 2018 at 11:32am PST

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Photograph by @florianschulzvisuals // Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to witness polar bear life at such close range when I set out to shoot the images that were published in my @natgeo story on polar bears. I looked at some of my notes I took when we followed this mother bear: “Over the course of the week, our polar bear mother (as we came to think of her) sometimes walked within twenty feet of the boat and simply lay down on the ice floe and fell asleep. But she did not stop there. After resting for a while, she sat up, took a look around, and invited the cubs to nurse. She fell into a kind of trancelike state, letting her head slowly sink down in exhaustion as her cubs drank. I can still clearly hear the suckling sounds in my mind and even noticed a purring from the cubs. It was an unforgettable sight: mother and cubs, nestled together on the ice in the warm late-evening light, with drifting sea ice leading to the horizon where it meets the edge of the Austfonna ice cap in Svalbard.” In late August polar bears are hanging on to the last of the drifting sea ice. To successfully raise her cubs, this mother needs the sea ice platform to hunt for seals. I was in awe. This bear completely trusted us. After taking the first pictures of this scene, I remember how I quickly rushed to the bow of the boat. I was not happy with the earlier framing of the image. I needed to photograph her straight from the front, to get the right symmetry in the composition to express this zen-like moment of this mother and her cubs at peace. Please follow me @florianschulzvisuals to see more images from the wild corners of this planet and hear about my experiences behind the lens. #polarbears #cubs #nursing #mothers #motherhood #arctic #climatechange #wildlifephotography #zen #babies #tranquility #bears #newlife #breastfeeding

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on Aug 25, 2018 at 1:30pm PDT

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Photo by @TimLaman. Male Raggiana Bird-of-Paradise in full display, Papua New Guinea. My Birds-of-Paradise exhibit is now open in Chicago at the Chicago Academy of Science’s Nature Museum! Sponsored by @NatGeo and #CornellLabofOrnithology. Check it out if you are in the Chicago area any time up to June 10! See “naturemuseum.org” for details. The exhibit includes my best bird-of-paradise images, videos, and many fun interactive elements and behind-the-scenes stories about my long term project on Birds-of-Paradise with Ed Scholes of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Follow me @TimLaman to see more of my best wild bird images throughout this special “#YearoftheBird”. #birdsofparadise @birdsofparadiseproject #RaggianaBirdofParadise #birds @thephotosociety @NatGeoCreative

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on Feb 1, 2018 at 9:00pm PST

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Photo by @brentstirton | Today we say goodbye to Sudan, the last remaining male Northern White Rhino. He died of age related complications at Ol Pejeta in Kenya, after being cared for by devoted rangers who guarded him 24 hours a day. I was mesmerized to see the relationship between Sudan and his caregivers. It showed me that once again there is so much that remains unexplored in terms of communication and understanding between man and animals. I had no idea that this kind of relationship was possible until I saw it for myself. There are 2 remaining female Northern White Rhino at Ol Pejeta, who do a fantastic job of caring for these last remaining Northern White Rhino.

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on Mar 20, 2018 at 7:36pm PDT

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Photo and words by @JustinHofman (Justin Hofman) | This is a photo that I wish didn’t exist, but now that it does, I want everyone to see it. What started as an opportunity to photograph a cute little sea horse turned into one of frustration and sadness as the incoming tide brought with it countless pieces of trash and sewage. This sea horse drifts with the trash day in and day out as it rides the currents that flow along the Indonesian archipelago. This photo serves as an allegory for the current and future state of our oceans. What sort of future are we creating? How can your actions shape our planet? ____________ Entertainer and activist Zooey Deschanel (@zooeydeschanel), co-founder of the Farm Project (@farmproject), is guest curating the @natgeo feed today as we launch Planet or Plastic? (#PlanetorPlastic), a multiyear effort to raise awareness about the global plastic crisis. Check back throughout the day to see Zooey’s selection of powerful images related to ocean plastics and the threat they pose to the environment.

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on May 17, 2018 at 6:05am PDT

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Photo by @brentstirton | This #blackrhino lost its horn to #poachers in #Zimbabwe. They left the animal for dead with multiple AK47 bullet wounds. This bull recovered briefly and walked through the bush for nearly a week in unimaginable pain and confusion. There were maggots breeding in his face when he finally died. We all lost another severely endangered black rhino bull to this incident, further depleting the gene pool of a magnificent species that we are losing. It’s no secret that rhinos are severely endangered today, yet China recently declared that it will once again allow trading of rhino and tiger parts domestically after a 25-year ban. They say this is to accommodate “farmed animals” bred in China. There are many reports on those farms, none of them good. Issues of severe inbreeding, starvation, and other abuses are common. There are also many reports that wild animals fetch higher prices on the Chinese market. Any legalization of these animal products throws open large loopholes for the illegal trade, stimulating poaching against severely endangered animals in countries that feed the illegal wildlife trade flowing into China. This is a very disappointing decision on the part of #China, especially so soon after they agreed to ban their domestic #Ivory trade.

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on Nov 7, 2018 at 2:33am PST