In 2008, we saw many gregarious animals showing off for the cameras, which is why we must tip our hats to the more bashful wild animals,
like this Hungarian owl...
.Conchita, the three-week-old white-naped mangabey monkey at London Zoo, who found protection in the form of an old teddy...
but the bashful animal of the year just has to be this giant panda cub, who played peek-a-boo with the photographers
We considered giving the 'wildest animal' award to Yachan, the black belt ninja ape...
but then we remembered the tough hen that scared an eagle so he'd never return to eat her...
.but our winner is Aman, the 20-year-old orangutan who had his eyesight restored after 10 years of blindness. He looked in the mirror, saw his cheeks and went ballistic!
The 'it thinks it's a person' award was tough call. Christmas cheer made us consider these seasonal penguins...
...perhaps this warmly dressed simian, out for a stroll in Moscow, should have been the recipient..
but the winner had to be the saxophone-playing walrus. Coming to a jazz bar near you.
The 'creature comforts' award very nearly went to this group of Indian monkeys who found the benefits of air conditioning...
...perhaps, we thought, this little chap's warm ears should win him the award...
..but the clear winners were the monkeys of Yamanouchi, Japan, who relaxed in the ape equivalent of a hot tub, the natural hot spring. Turn the bubbles on
Runner up in the 'wet wildlife' contest went to these soggy bald eagles which dove into the back of an uncovered dump truck full of fish guts and became too wet to fly away. Cheer up lads...
..this polar bear was a close second place...
..but the winner is this damp little elephant from Bangkok
This lewd lemur, who stuck his tongue out at a parrot in Hamburg, almost won the 'cheekiest animal' award...
.this little Siberian tiger cub, who really put his foot in it was certainly in the running...
...but it had to go these naughty orangutans, showing off in their Indonesian nursery
Kelly, the gorilla deserved to win the 'greedy guzzler' award...
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...and who could forget Wilbaer and his 'birthday cake'. Leave some for us...
..but the gong had to go to these spider monkeys in Medellin, Colombia. Their greed could never be confined by a mere fence!
The 'confused creature' award almost went to tiger cub Zoya, who thought she was a puppy...
.but Themba, the elephant who thought it was a sheep, was far sillier and thus deserved the coveted prize
The runner up for 'cosiest creature' is Kibongo, a baby crowned lemur, who snuggled up under a blanket at a zoo in Vincennes, near Paris...
...but the winners are these bundled-up flying foxes at a rehabilitation centre on the Gold Coast, Australia
A special award deserves to go this combat-ready chimpanzee who assisted in manning a checkpoint near the provincial capital of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo
...and White Diamond the albino alligator, deserves the award for 'coolest name'
Finally, we dub these two baby giant pandas the cutest runners up...
...but the cutest wild animal? It has to be Anuy and Argun, the two eight-week-old Amur leopard cubs in Smarden, Kent
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/pict...ars-oh-my.html