Photographer caption: Taking place every year across Galicia, Rapa das Bestas, or 'Shearing of the Beasts,' involves cutting the manes of semi-feral horses that live in the mountains. Horses are rounded up into enclosures called curros, foals are branded and the adults groomed before being freed. The best known is the Rapa das Bestas of Sabucedo, which takes place the first weekend in July.
Photo by Javier Arcenillas (Alcobendas, Madrid, Spain); Sabucedo, Pontevedra, Spain
This photo is a finalist in the Natural World category of our 14th Annual Photo Contest. This year, we received more than 48,000 submissions, submitted by photographers from 146 countries and territories. See all 70 finalists and vote for the Readers’ Choice Winner!