BEAR CUBS AND DOTING MUM

A little brown bear cub shows his doting mum that she is always on parent duty as he uses her as a scratching post. These adorable photographs of two playful bear cubs and their watchful mum were captured by American nature photographer D. Robert Franz, 56, on a visit to Lake Clark National Park, Alaska. 'What we see in these photographs is the interaction between the mother brown bear and her two cubs,' says D. Robert, of Cody, Wyoming.

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TUNNEL FOR VICTORY

What lies beneath this building site? Britain's great hope of winning the pre-WW2 arms race against Nazi Germany .

SNOOZING SEAL PUP

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STUNNING CONTRAST OF ENGLISH SETTINGS

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EASTER ISLAND REPLICA STATUES DESTROYED IN SEA FALL

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BABY WHALE AND MOTHER LAP UP TOURIST ATTENTION

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CHERNOBYL - 28 YEARS ON

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FLY FISHING

A fish almost escapes the beak of a bird as they both soar through the air .

EXERCISING OTTERS

A group of otters put on a show of aqua aerobics, as they raise their flippers perfectly in sync .

ANIMAL WHISPERER TAMES SILKY SHARK

A diving guide leaves a shark completely docile and balanced in the palm of his hand .

RESCUE TURTLES OPEN WIDE FOR DINNER

A pair of BEAUTIFUL rescue sea turtles spot their catch in the waters of the Great Barrier Reef .

VIBRANT WOODPECKER FEEDS HER YOUNG

A middle spotted woodpecker swoops into her nest and feeds her young in a forest in Trentino, Italy .

STUNNING ENGLISH COASTAL LANDSCAPES

WITH STUNNING colours and serene scenes, these photographs capture the otherworldly beauty of the English coast .