Trapped in cubicleland in downtown Washington, D.C., watching animal videos is my main conduit to the natural world.

As National Geographic's digital animals editor, it's also my job. I'm always on the lookout for the most bizarre, exciting, and exclusive moments from the wild, from a mother owl taking on a snake (and winning) to a genet riding a rhino. (See the top ten viral animal videos of 2015.)

And thanks to the proliferation and popularity of smartphones and affordable video cameras, there are more new recordings of natural phenomena than ever before—some never previously documented.