Yawning Puppy
Puppies don’t yawn more than other animals, it’s just that they’re often observed by photographers in domestic close quarters that make opportunities to snap a yawn shot all the more common. Not that this is a bad thing: is there anything cuter than a yawning puppy?
Puppies are tiny balls of energy that expend said energy rather quickly, and when their batteries run down the yawns start up. Hey, they don’t call it “dog tired” for nothing, y’know!
Yawning Tiger
Hold that tiger! Because yawning or not, this is one big cat who’s not afraid to take a big bite out the situation. Tigers combine astonishing beauty with a frightening array of finely honed carnivore tools laid out literally from head to toe.
Life moves fast for a growing (or should that be “growling”) tiger cub. This young fellow appears quite willing to show off his choppers though the worst he could do is gnaw on your ankle… wouldn’t that be cute?
Yawning Crocodile
Yawning Crocodilians, we should say – America’s Alligators would surely be miffed if they’re ignored and a miffed alligator (above, right) is something nobody needs. Crocs yawn for a variety of reasons – it gets tiring waiting in the water hole all day in stealth mode. Crocodiles have also been known to open wide for certain species of “cleaner birds” who work within a nerve-wracking window of opportunity that may close at any time.
Towering infernal? This spectacular shot of a yawning croc shows off this exquisite primordial creature in all it’s powerful reptilian glory. All we can say is, thank goodness for telephoto lenses!
Yawning Panda
Yawning Pandas look even more peaceful than usual – not bad for a creature whose typical MO is “eats, shoots and leaves.” Pandas have endeared themselves to millions of admirers the world over and it’s no surprise really: their habit of assuming positions and making gestures that resemble those assumed and made by humans is virtually unique among non-primates.
Even the Giant Panda’s closest relative, the much smaller Red Panda, yawns like there’s no tomorrow morning. Being much lighter than their black & white cousins, Red Pandas live much of their lives in jungle treetops, moving from branch to branch as they search for the day’s tucker… it’s enough to tucker one out!
Yawning Penguin
All that marching and a penguin’s gotta rest sometime, amiright? besides, April comes after March and stepping out naturally leads to sleeping in. Pity they can’t take off that form-fitting tuxedo and yawn to their hearts’ content in warm flannel PJs.
Think life’s easy for a baby Adelie Penguin like the one above? The l’il feller above seems to think so, what with having to listen to Dad’s old fishing stories over and over while riding around on the tops of his feet.
Yawning Ape
The Great Apes are human beings’ closest relatives, no matter what Charlton Heston may think. Gorillas, Chimpanzees and Orangutans display an amazing range of human-like behaviors which include yawning, sometimes to comical effect.
Of course, the very best images of yawning animals feature babies doing what all babies do best. Another way yawning ties us to our relatives in the animal kingdom is the shared expression yawners of almost all species seem to share. We yawn, therefore we are… getting sleepy.
We featured hippos displaying their 150-degree yawns in our original Yawning Animals post but look closer… that’s a baby crocodile looking equally calm while precariously perched on the big bull’s back! He’d best be discrete to avoid being noticed – but seeing his living island crack a humungous yawn can he resist doing the same?