The art of taking selfies has officially been adopted by the animal kingdom, and it's one of the most hilarious things going viral right now. From zoo residents to family pets, these animals are posing, smiling, and even grouping up for the camera. The resulting photos are both adorable and fascinating, as they provide a window into the private lives of the wild's most mysterious creatures.
While it's possible to make pets take selfies by touching a smartphone screen, for more exotic animals, a clever method was created. It's called camera trapping, which means the photo is taken when the animal touches or approaches a motion-sensing device near the lens. It's a totally safe and non-invasive trick, and it captures even the most dangerous predators in candid, sincerely funny moments.
One mischievous monkey in Indonesia caused a scandal with her selfie in 2014 after she got her hands on a British photographer's equipment. The images were stunning, and lead to several heated court cases over their true author and copyright holder. It was finally determined that the monkey - a gorgeous Celebes crested macaque - took the pictures herself, making them public domain. Now everyone can freely enjoy her irresistible toothy grin.
Take a look at some of the best animal selfies making their way around the web right now, and while you're at it, double-check that your own furbaby hasn't run off with your phone.
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Selfie With The Crew
Self-Portrait Of A Female Celebes Crested Macaque, Who Had Picked Up Photographer David Slater's Camera And Photographed Herself With It
Chillin' With The Gang
Omg Quokka!
I Woke Up Like This
How come all of these animals look much better than me in selfies XD
My Cousin Wanted A Selfie With A Kangaroo
But First Let Me Take A Selfie
Beautiful Husky
Bella Takes A Selfie
Tufted Titmouse Selfie
Horse Selfie
Pikelet Taking A Selfie With Foster Puppies
Mondays
Selfie Time
Selfieeee
BFF Selfie Time
Lion Selfie
BFF Selfie Time
Rabbit Selfie
Caught Our Husky Taking Selfies In Bed
Selfie Level: Highly Concerned
It Was Our First Attempt At "Selfie Sunday"
Travelling In Indonesia, Monkey Pick Pocketed Me And Left Behind This Selfie
Cat Takes Selfie To Prove He Is Being Abused
Charlie The Sea Otter Takes A Selfie In The Exhibit
Monday Morning Selfie
Just Hanging Wif My Friends
I Found A Series Of Selfies On My Camera. The Milk Teeth Aren't Helping
Kitten Selfie: The Very Best Kind Of Selfie
When You Take A Picture And The Selfie Cam Surprises You
Fresh Out Of The Shower, No Makeup, Selfie!
Selfie! Deffo Got My Best Side
Baby Sloth Selfie
Tried To Take A Selfie With My Dog. Turned Out Great
It's A Selfie
Smile!
"Lol Just Me Cooking In The Kitchen"
Bae Caught Me Slippin
Elephant Selfie
Selfie Time
I don't think this is the right filter, is it? - Um, I think so?
This Little Goober's Selfie
Taught My Chickens How To Selfie
Kangaroo Selfie
I Met This Little Guy Today, But First He Took A Selfie
It’s An Instagram Koala Takeover!
When You Accidentally Open Your Front Camera
Cat Wanted To Take A Selfie
So Today I Was Taking A Photo Of A Litter Of One Week Old Puppies When I Got Photobombed By My Other Dog
Let A Sloth Take A Selfie On My Phone In The Amazon
What Cat?
How Do I Look?
Takin' A Selfie
This Emu Is Definitely Not A Coward
I Dropped My Phone And My Chicken Took A Selfie
I Can't Decide If He Is The Most Interesting Dog Or The Happiest Dog Ever
Hmmm. Looks Like Someone Could Really Use A Pair Of Sunnies At The Moment
When You Sneak A Quick Selfie On Your Girls Phone
It Looks Like My Dog Is Taking A Selfie Of Him And My Wife In This Pic
When My Dog Wants To Do A Selfie While My Cat Wants Nothing To Do With It
Excited Dog And His Friend
Come On Guys Lets Take A Selfie, Say Cheese
Tiger Selfie
Gizmo! Stop Taking Pictures Of Yourself Like Those Girls On Facebook
LOL, my gf's cat is the same color, and she named him to Gizmo too...
Cheese
But First, Let Me Take A Selfie
I Took A Selfie With My Main Dude
Snapcat
Golia Selfie
Hello There!
My Dog, The Derp
Who Wore It Better Wednesday
My Dog Took A Selfie
Kangaroo Selfie
Dog Selfie And Photobomb
There's three kinds of people in this world... please tell me these aren't them.
My Dog Doing His Selfie Thing
Pug Selfie
I Met A Raccoon On The Beach And He Took A Selfie
Doggo Selfie Time
For a moment i thought that the hand in the background was the dog o-o