CARRYING a fully grown goat on his back, this five-year-old boy is a child shepherd in the mountains of northern Ethiopia. Away from modern civilization, children living in the Simien Mountains spend their gruelling days herding, or carrying, animals and walking miles through the rocky terrain. From the age of five these children are responsible for goats and sheep in the highlands and when they do rest, the boys and girls are schooled in classrooms made from mud, rocks and wood. German photographer Mario Gerth trekked 3,000 metres up the Ethiopian mountain range to visit this group of Tigray people and their hardy children and witness their unorthodox lifestyle.
WIDE EYED and staring straight down the lens of the camera, this intrigued seal is ready for his close up .
HOTSPOT MEDIA - BACK TO THE FUTURE WITH AR' KID: A POSTAL SORTER has perfected the art of time travel by delivering images that are from the past .
COURAGEOUS CLIMBERS scale frozen waterfalls in Canada, as the ice threatens to collapse beneath them .
HUNDREDS of colour coordinated yarns lie abandoned in this once thriving textile mill .
A quiet Himalayan mountain village springs to life for a colourful Buddhist festival designed to expel evil spirits and bring happiness .
At first glance what might look like ordinary rusty bridge and road railings, are in fact amazing works of art .
ROLLING around in the snow, these young brown bears take a break from their play fight to share a tender hug with one another .
LEAF-ing much to the imagination, this camera trickery is blooming marvellous .
A lazy otter finds the ideal spot to soak up the sun and sleep off his lunch .
A grey whale and her calf greet an audience of awestruck admirers on the Pacific coast of Baja California Sur, Mexico .
A little clownfish opens its mouth to reveal a blood sucking intruder living on its tongue .
SWIMMING in unison, millions of silverside fish dwarf the divers .