Acrobats of La Paz, Mexico

"A juvenile California sea lion performing close to the camera. The speed and elegance of these creatures is really unmatched in the oceans," wrote David Henshaw of his image, a winning selection in the Portraits of Planet Ocean Flickr contest. California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) are social animals, forming groups of hundreds to thousands of animals that gather onshore to breed. Since the Marine Mammal Protection Act was passed in 1972, their population has swelled off the California coast, and is now estimated at nearly 300,000 animals. See more winning photos.