Hilarious Photo of Dancing Gorilla Wins Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards

The Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards have unveiled their highly anticipated winning photos. The annual competition, sure to put a smile on everyone’s faces, garnered a record-breaking number of entries this year.

Photographers from 109 different countries entered over 10,000 images into the 11th annual Comedy Wildlife Awards. Of these, the judges shortlisted 44 riotous photos and videos, which were showcased back in October.

Passionate amateur British photographer Mark Meth-Cohn took home top honors for his incredible photo of a gorilla appearing to dance in the Rwandan wilderness.

“The competition was as fierce as ever; however, Mark’s photograph emerged as a clear favorite among the judges — with the shot also claiming the Mammals Category Award,” the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards explains.

Meth-Cohn recalls spending four “unforgettable days” hiking in the Virunga Mountains in Rwanda in search of gorilla families.

“On this particular day, we came across a large family group known as the Amahoro family, they were gathered in a forest clearing where the adults were calmly foraging while the youngsters were enthusiastically playing,” the photographer explains. “One young male was especially keen to show off his acrobatic flair: pirouetting, tumbling, and high kicking. Watching his performance was pure joy, and I’m thrilled to have captured his playful spirit in this image.”

Meth-Cohn, who was also a finalist in last year’s Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards, is extremely excited to try to photograph big cats in Africa. For his grand prize win, Meth-Cohn wins a once-in-a-lifetime African safari in the Masai Mara, Kenya, thanks to Alex Walker’s Serian. Meth-Cohn may very well get to live out his photographic dreams.

“Doing well in any competition shows that the images you are producing are working.  The Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards are one of the major competitions of the year, easy to enter and fun but with a seriously committed underlying ethos and, after reaching the finals last year, I’m absolutely delighted to have gone one step further and win the competition this year,” adds Mark Meth-Cohn.

Category Winners

Alongside Meth-Cohn’s top prize and victory in the Mammals category, other photographers fought tooth and nail to win various categories. All the category winners, plus 10 Highly Commended Winners, are featured below.

Highly Commended

“We are so thrilled to celebrate the incredible talent and creativity showcased in this year’s Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards,” says Stefan Maier, Senior General Manager of Marketing at Nikon Europe. “All of our category winners use joy, skills and imagination to capture the natural world, and Mark’s winning image perfectly represents the playful spirit of wildlife. At Nikon, we are incredibly proud to support these visual storytellers and provide them with the tools to share their unique perspectives, inspiring audiences everywhere to connect with and care for our planet’s remarkable wildlife.”

All the winning photos are on display now at the Gallery@Oxo in London from December 10-14. Starting tomorrow, December 10, the public can begin voting on the Sterna People’s Choice Award. All 40-plus finalists are eligible, and voting is open until March 14, 2026, on the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards website.

Image credits: Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards. All photographers are credited in the image captions.