I was observing three cheetahs at the National Zoo for quite some time when one of them decided to enter the dug out area of their habitat where two cheetahs were already lying down. Just before he entered it, he turned in my direction and stuck out his tongue. I have no idea what he might have been trying to communicate to me. Perhaps he was no longer interested in my antics and was trying to tell me so or maybe it was his way of saying goodnight. Whatever his intention, it makes for an interesting photo.
Cheetah sticking out his tongue
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Nothing better than a Cheetah rasberry..:-)
We all need critics!
Good eye, ready to capture the moment.
Thanks, Mel. In this case it was mostly the result of persistence. Lots of people came and went as I watched the cheetahs, but few lingered for more than a couple of minutes. I really like the light in the area of the entrance to that little dug out area and when that cheetah stepped into it I was expecting that there might be some interaction with the ones already inside of it. That was why I was ready. The tongue was an extra bonus.
Being there is a critical aspect of good images!
I have read somewhere, in an issue of National Geographic perhaps, that a Bronx cheer expressed by a cheetah, one of the most photographed animals in the world, more even than runway models, occurs in the cat’s lifetime from three to five times, never less than three and never more than five. Such expressions of approval demonstrate the ultimate show of the cat’s appreciation for the photographer’s ability to record the act. However, there is a significant school of thought voiced by cheetah experts, particularly for those in captivity (the cats, not the experts), that the cheetah values its privacy and its extended tongue indicates anger at having that privacy violated. I can readily relate to that. I have been favored with similar cheers many times over more than eight decades and I deserved all of them. However, I have never been favored by a Bronx cheer from a cheetah, but I can only dream of one.
Well done, Mike. My daughter Cindy, your mentor in all things photographic, should have given you a shout-out for this one. If not, perhaps mine will suffice.
Keep shooting. Your photos and your related writings are breaths of fresh air on Word Press.