An Australian explorer has travelled the globe with a toy pig, known as Travel Piggy, in search of a missing cuddly companion. Over the last three years, Peter Franc, 35, of Sydney, Australia and his plush pig pal have visited 30 different countries and a host of breath-taking locations, including Niagara Falls and Mount Everest, with Travel Piggy posing for pictures along the way. The pair are on a mission to find Peter’s former travel buddy, a cuddly toy rabbit, dubbed Travel Bunny, which was stolen from Peter’s car in Italy in 2010. While the reunion is yet to happen, Peter, an interface designer, and his new travelling companion remain undeterred.
A diving guide leaves a shark completely docile and balanced in the palm of his hand .
LYING back in the snow, these two polar bears share a cuddle as they call time out on playtime .
BURSTING from the water, a beautiful but deadly Sumatran tiger jumps for food in an Indonesian zoo .
SWIMMING slowly towards the shore, a small group of bottlenose dolphins arrive for breakfast at a beach in Western Australia .
AN American accountant has grown the world's biggest MELON and smashed his way into the record books with his mammoth 350 .
DIVING boffins fired harpoons into 30-foot-long whale sharks in a bid to put the sea-beasts on Google Maps .
HUDDLING under a leaf, a pair of adorable Javan scops owls take shelter from the rain .
An Italian photographer travelled to Chile where he visited several star-gazing sites, home to some of the world's most advanced telescopes, located in the spectacular setting of the Atacama desert .
A cheeky chipmunk offers some of his spare food, before deciding against the idea and shoving the extra peanut into his already crammed mouth .
If you had to scrape the snow off your car this morning or slip-slide your way into work over icy pavements spare a thought for these little critters .
A blanket of fog is lit up by the colourful glowing lights of the city below .
At first glance what might look like ordinary rusty bridge and road railings, are in fact amazing works of art .