BABY WHALE AND MOTHER LAP UP TOURIST ATTENTION

A grey whale and her calf greet an audience of awestruck admirers on the Pacific coast of Baja California Sur, Mexico. The magnificent mammals swim up to several boats full of tourists and get so close that the passengers can stroke the mother and baby whale. The special moment was photographed by lawyer Andrea Izzotti, 47, of Genovia, Italy. Andrea says: “The mother was milking her calf in shallow waters, but they are very curious animals and they came up to our boats to see the humans.

Other great stories
BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHS BROUGHT TO LIFE

BREATHING life back into old photographs, these black and white images are transformed by colour .

WELSH HOTEL ONCE HOME TO WWI SOLDIERS NOW LIES ABANDONED

A grand 56-bedroom hotel, once heaving with injured soldiers during the First World War, now lies completely abandoned .

FIGHTING FOXES

A pair of snarling foxes go paw-to-paw and brawl after unexpectedly crossing paths .

ENGLISH SEASIDE SPLIT SHOTS

From a floating jelly fish to a relaxed seal, Britain’s unappreciated beach life is captured above and below the water .

AMAZING AERIAL PATTERNS

Swirling water and sand create amazing aerial images of river deltas across Iceland .

SMILEY GECKO POSES FOR THE CAMERA

WITH A wide smile plastered across his face, this little gecko is ready for his close up .

BIG FOOT 'JESUS BIRD'

THIS BIGFOOT 'Jesus bird' may look silly, but he's perfectly designed for walking on water .

WALLABY FEEDS PIGEON

THIS caring wallaby shares her lunch with a hungry pigeon .

CRICKET FINDS AN UNUSUAL SEAT

A cricket perches on an unusual seat after crawling up the snout of a crocodile .

MESMERIZING STAR TRAILS

MESMERIZING night sky photographs offer a spellbinding look at the stars .

BEAR AND FOX IN SHOWDOWN

This is the moment a nimble red fox and a lumbering Alaskan brown bear were locked in a tense stand-off .

PRAYING MANTIS MAKES AN UNLIKELY FRIEND

A brave praying mantis makes an unusual friend in an Oriental garden lizard .