SOARING through the air, a hungry white-tailed kite prepares to snatch a vole from his mother’s claws. This mid-air takeaway was captured by Malaysian photographer Phoo Chan on a trip to Gomes Park in Fremont, California, USA. ‘At first glance this looks like a fight over food, but it is actually an adult white-tailed kite offering her freshly caught vole to her chick,’ says 50-year-old Phoo, of California. Being able to catch the vole in mid-air is part of the chick’s formative training, before the bird is old enough to hunt on his own.
Animal rescue volunteers have told how a cat riddled with cancer was forced to ripped off its own ears after it was abandoned by its owners .
A TAXIDERMY truck spotted in America’s Deep South could be the most gruesome wagon on the road .
FROM MRS Patmore to Lady Sybil, these barking mad illustrations show the WOOF-er side of some of our most loved Downton characters .
A dog was SOW close to death after she dangerously swallowed a two-inch NEEDLE-Cute Shih Tzu Daisy could have pierced her intestines after eating the long needle and thread after finding it on the carpet .
A floating market in Indonesia is bursting with vibrant colours as wooden rowing boats loaded with fruit and vegetables crowd the river .
DIVING down at a speed of 75mph, this is the moment a hungry osprey caught his prey .
HOPPING onto the scales, these adorable baby Humboldt penguins are ready for their first weigh-in .
THIS is the awesome moment an Osprey catches its prey travelling at 50mph, giving new meaning to FAST FOOD .
POWERFUL bolts of lightning illuminate the night sky in an incredible autumn storm over the Sardinian coastline .
WITH the phosphorescent blobs and mesmerising patterns, these spectacular images may look like the hall marks of an enchanted forest but it is in fact the scene of thousands of dancing FIREFLIES .
MOUTH OPEN wide, this little stoat appears to be in mid-song as he belts out a tune for his onlookers .
IN a galaxy not so far away lies a magical display of lights that could be the latest image from NASA .