The beluga calf, nestled amid its family, glides across the bottom of the rocky sea floor. Poking out of its mouth is a flat stone—a toy for passing around among the whales. Belugas, scientists believe, have complex social structures: They teach each other swimming routes; they use individual calls, possibly to broadcast their identities; they flit and flirt and frolic together, waggling their flukes and shimmying their bodies along the seafloor to exfoliate their skin; they engage in play. We’re only beginning to understand the depths of whale culture. 

Brian Skerry’s photograph of the playful young beluga is the first of its kind. It’s one of 28 images selected by National Geographic’s photo editors as our best animal photos