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.
A middle spotted woodpecker swoops into her nest and feeds her young in a forest in Trentino, Italy .
Peering curiously into a basket hanging off the arms of a snowman, this little squirrel appears fascinated by the snowy figure .
A diver attempts to control rising numbers of lionfish by feeding the venomous species to Caribbean reef sharks .
It's incredible to think anyone could live in such horrendous squalor - yet two men have been prosecuted for keeping their homes in such revolting conditions that it was no longer fit for their animals .
SPARKLING bright inside their box, it’s hard to believe these diamonds are made from the cremated remains of the deceased .
A diver explores the crystal clear waters of the Silfra canyon in southern Iceland, which is the only place on Earth where you can dive or snorkel between two continental plates .
FLEXING his muscles and staring straight at his opponent, this bodybuilding squirrel is the nuts .
The dog having been pulled from the car - A police officer smashed a window in the blue Chrysler car to free the dog which was in visible distress .
A young otter wades through a lake with his eyes set on an older rival’s fish .
