30 Powerful Wildlife Photos From Wikimedia Commons That Show The Beauty Of Life On Earth

Every year, photographers from around the world share incredible images on Wikimedia Commons, capturing the beauty and diversity of life on Earth. The Picture of the Year 2025 marks the 20th edition of this annual competition, celebrating some of the best contributions from the global community.

This year, animal photography once again stands out, with powerful images that go beyond aesthetics to tell stories about the natural world. From intimate moments to dramatic scenes in the wild, these photos highlight just how fascinating and fragile life on our planet can be.

We’ve selected 30 of the most striking animal photos that could take the title this year. Scroll down to explore them and see which one deserves your vote.

More info: commons.wikimedia.org

Image by Kaim Amin.

Image by Senthi Aathavan Senthilverl

Image by Andy Morffew

Image by Tuxyso

Image by Giles Laurent

Image by Sanjoykumar99

Image by Prasan Shrestha

Image by Charlesjsharp

Image by Ganga Raj Sunuwar

Image by Giles Laurent

Image by Rhododendrites

Image by Alex Abair

Image by Terragio67

Image by Giles Laurent

Image by Rhododendrites

Image by Poco a poco

The reasons why whales practice breaching are still unknown today. Some hypotheses, among others, are that breaching is done in order to either communicate, court, assert dominance, warn of danger, remove parasites from the skin, or play. Image by Giles Laurent