Paris

Imperiled Rhino

Imperiled Rhino

Photograph by Richard Young

This Month in Photo of the Day: National Geographic Photo Contest Images

Zimbabwe's Matopos National Park had 86 white and 36 black rhinos ten years ago. Poachers have reduced these numbers to only 9 white 17 black rhinos today. These numbers say it all. The park's oldest white rhino, Gumboot, was killed by poachers just two weeks before I took this picture of Swazi 2, his horn cut off to help protect him from poaching. If we do not act now to save them from poaching, we will be the generation responsible for the extinction of the rhino in the wild.

The Blessed Man

The Blessed Man

Photograph by Yosuke Kashiwakura

This Month in Photo of the Day: National Geographic Photo Contest Images

The Saidai-ji Eyo festival, considered one of the three strangest festivals in Japan, is a Buddhist ritual in which 9,000 men compete to grab just a pair of sacred wooden batons to decide who will be the "blessed man" for the year. The over 500-year-old tradition of Eyo is based on an underlying understanding of the state of human life, greater than the ideals and trends of a single generation, and this idea has been cherished and passed down through the centuries.

Frosted Tamarack Swamp

Frosted Tamarack Swamp

Photograph by Adam Dorn

This Month in Photo of the Day: National Geographic Photo Contest Images

I had scouted out a few places for an early morning shoot in the tamarack swamps of Wisconsin. I searched and searched until I found this scene. With the sun barely breaking through the fog rising from the melting frost, the light lit up the tamarack in front of this ditch. The ditch faded into the mist, while the frost captured the early morning rays as everything glinted like it was covered in diamonds. I absolutely fell in love with the mood that this scene created. Just a few moments later, the sun rose high in the sky and melted all the frost, causing the scene to completely change.

There's Always One

There's Always One

Photograph by Yashani Shantha

This Month in Photo of the Day: National Geographic Photo Contest Images

Elephants at the elephant orphanage in Pinnawala, Sri Lanka. The orphanage was originally founded in order to afford care and protection to the many orphaned elephants found in the jungle. As of 2003, there were 65 elephants. Since the captive breeding program was launched in 1982, over 20 elephants have been born. The aim of the orphanage is to simulate the natural world. However, there are some exceptions: The elephants are taken to the river twice daily for a bath, and all the babies under three years of age are still bottle fed by the mahouts and volunteers.

Wintry Wait

Wintry Wait

Photograph by Johnny Haglund

This Month in Photo of the Day: National Geographic Photo Contest Images

In February 2012, a few people wait for the bus as the temperature drops below minus 30ºF (about minus 35ºC) in the northeast Russian city of Susuman. In this area the winter can bring temperatures down to minus 58ºF (minus 50ºC).

A Shepherd's Flock

A Shepherd's Flock

Photograph by Juan Aguilar

This Month in Photo of the Day: National Geographic Photo Contest Images

Silence and light accompany sheep and shepherd, day in, day out, near Halabja, Iraq.