Guardian readers February 27, 2013

Readers’ travel photograph competition: February – animals

The standard in this month's competition is one of the strongest we've seen and there are some stunning images in the gallery. All monthly winning images will be displayed at a finalists' exhibition at the Guardian's offices, with the overall winner bagging an amazing trip to Canada

Feb BT gallery: Japanese macaques — Luke Braidwood: Japanese macaques can be seen around the town of Yudanaka, using the hot springs to keep warm in winter. Steam billows around the monkeys as they groom and occasionally fight each other. These two were feeling the cold, and thinking of going for a dip when I saw them. It was a magical Christmas day Photograph: Luke Braidwood

Feb BT gallery: water buffalo — Noah Spencer: I took this in an area of Zambia called Mwambashi, along the lower Zambezi river. One evening, during a game drive, we came upon a very large herd of buffalo. They stirred up a lot of dust into the air as the sun was going down, creating a serendipitous display. It was a truly an amazing sight Photograph: Noah Spencer

Feb BT gallery: giant tortoises — James Guppy: Initially these giant tortoises, pictured here on a trip to Mauritius, can be a little scary if you’re getting right down among them but this lot didn’t seem to have their minds focused on anything except enjoying each other’s company … the sort of thing that leads to the next generation Photograph: James Guppy

Feb BT gallery: cormorant fisherman — Ian Webb: Late one night while I was sitting by the river in Yangshuo, China, I was approached by a man who offered to take me out on his boat, and we came upon this cormorant fisherman. We followed him closely for about 40 minutes watching him and his birds work and catch fish in the near darkness. At the end we went ashore, where I took some photos of him posing with one of the cormorants. A very memorable time from my trip Photograph: Ian Webb

Feb BT gallery: Gobi Desert of Mongolia with the Bactrian camels — Louise Greidinger: I've always been fascinated by camels, so being in the Gobi Desert of Mongolia with the Bactrian camels was an amazing experience. I wanted to capture something of the captivating character of these splendid animals, who have played such an important role in the history of Mongolia Photograph: Louise Greidinger

Feb BT gallery: Butterfly Park in Kuala Lumpur — Mick Porter: I visited the Butterfly Park in Kuala Lumpur in the mid afternoon, just as heavy rain clouds were forming. The falling light was forcing me to shoot with a very wide aperture, but it also had a quality that seemed really special as I was taking this shot. I love the way the flowers move in and out of the focal plane, and I managed to manually focus right on the butterfly's head. Photograph: Mick Porter

Feb BT gallery: ragonfly was taking a break on a plant in Yogyakarta, Indonesia — Amy Wade: This dragonfly was taking a break on a plant in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The reflection of my camera on his huge eyes gives him quite a cheeky facial expression Photograph: Amy Wade

Feb BT gallery: young female proboscis monkey — Robin Fawcett: A young female proboscis monkey in rain forest in Sabah, eastern Borneo. I waited for nearly an hour for the monkey to protrude in this way Photograph: Robin Fawcett

Feb BT gallery: Malaysian Borneo — Salwek Kozdras: Animal shots taken in Malaysian Borneo tend to focus on orangutans and pygmy elephants, but my favourite shot is this one of a beautiful cat sneaking up on me in a Sea Gypsy village Photograph: Slawek Kozdras

Feb BT gallery: Glen Nevis — Morag Ramsey: I called this 'Wish I could do that'. That's what a friend’s child said when I showed him the image: 'I wish I could get my tongue up my nose!' I was in Glen Nevis and approached by this nosey young cow – I was actually trying to get an arty shot of a rock at the time Photograph: Morag Ramsey

Feb BT gallery: Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage — Marc Ehrenbold: The Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage in Sri Lanka is the largest of its kind in the world. Twice a day the elephants are driven across the road to the Ma Oya river for a leisurely bath. Seeing 70 elephants all wade into the river at once was a truly amazing spectacle. In this picture one bull elephant covered in red earth raises his head among the herd to enjoy the refreshing water Photograph: Marc Ehrenbold

Feb BT gallery: Lion Park in Johannesburg — Zoltan Toth: I went on a day trip to the Lion Park in Johannesburg to play with lion cubs and learn about other animals. This image of two lions cuddling is one of my favourite photographs Photograph: Zoltan Toth

Feb BT gallery: Shamwari game reserve in South Africa — Steve Weaver: We were following a large herd of elephants on a game drive in the Shamwari game reserve in South Africa, when this female took exception to our close proximity and became agitated, giving the impression she was dancing Photograph: Steve Weaver

Feb BT gallery: Franz Josef glacier — Melody Nairn: The 12km-long Franz Josef glacier perches above New Zealand's Waiho river. The area is notorious for the amount of rain it gets, so we couldn't have been happier when the sun blazed on the day of our seven-hour ice trek. We spied this kea (alpine parrot) on the edge of the glacier, an embodiment of beauty and calm Photograph: Melody Nairn

Feb BT gallery: Umfolozi national park — Dale Morris: This shot was taken in the Hluhluwe Umfolozi national park, South Africa. It is one of the few parks that has not experienced the terrible poaching which has been happening in most of the country's national parks Photograph: Dale Morris

Feb BT gallery: Nara world heritage site, Japan — Olly Denton: I took this in the Nara World Heritage site, Japan. There are hundreds of these deer walking around, mugging unsuspecting tourists for food. This young deer was a particularly obliging model, wandering around the ancient temples, posing for photos Photograph: Olly Denton

Feb BT gallery: St Andrews — Alison Pay: This shot was taken during a trip to St Andrews with my friends. I was able to lure this bird with some bread and it was brave enough to stay a little longer for a decent portrait shot Photograph: Alson Pay

Feb BT gallery: brown bears — Tim Bird, runner-up: There are a number of hides in Finland very close to the border with Russia where you can watch wild brown bears. I observed this courting couple for much of a stormy May night at Viiksimo near Kuhmo. The female seemed to be teasing the larger male which often tossed his head to get the torrential rain out of his lovestruck eyes. I got a lot of great shots of the bears but this one is my favourite because of the comic soaking that the male is receiving, as if a huge bucket of water were being emptied on his head

Natalie Mayer, judge: I just love this. Beautiful, back lit bears, bathing in soft light and rain. Stunning Photograph: Tim Bird

Feb BT gallery: tiger snake — Kris Bell, winner: Melbourne is Australia's second largest city and is regarded as the country's cultural capital, but many people don't know that the river that runs through the city centre is home to highly venomous tiger snakes. This much maligned snake is actually very unassuming and I spent many hours watching joggers, dog-walkers, cyclists and picnickers pass within feet of these amazing animals on the popular riverside walks, without being any the wiser

Natalie Mayer, judge: Great shot. Technically spot on, the snake captured at a great moment. He appears ready to pounce, and the low-level simple composition, combined with shallow depth of field really enhances this Photograph: Kris Bell

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