FROM ICE bubbles to boiling lava, these photographs highlight the stunning shapes and patterns found in nature. The series of extraordinary images were taken by German software engineer Thorsten Scheuermann after he decided to examine his surroundings. A trip to the city of Kalapana in Hawaii, home to the Kilauea Volcano, provided Thorsten with the setting for his lava picture, while a visit to the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon offered him the opportunity to photograph ice bubbles up-close. The 37-year-old, now of Washington, USA, said: 'These are sights that can gain greater significance and have their beauty exposed when excluding everything else around them.'
AN American accountant has grown the world's biggest MELON and smashed his way into the record books with his mammoth 350 .
FROM A mini table and chairs to a detailed violin, it’s hard to believe these incredible sculptures are all carved into the nib of PENCILS .
CAUSING a splash, this determined kingfisher goes hunting for dinner .
SQUABBLING over the last piece of grain, these hungry squirrels are determined to stock up on as much food as possible .
This tranquil setting stretches for miles as the sun sets behind the mountain .
Suspended FIFTY metres in the air, this is the last place that you would expect to find a fine dining experience .
It’s a role reversal in the Visayan Sea as HUNDREDS of tiny, glistening eggs are carried around inside the mouth of their cardinalfish father .
A pair of adorable polar bear cubs play-fight with each other in the Alaskan snow .
THIS RING of fire in the sky is the annular solar eclipse that wowed our cousins down-under .
COVERING themselves in ash and face paint, these are the holy men who live their lives away from everyday society .
SOARING through the air, this is the moment a hungry tawny owl arrives home with dinner .