NATURE'S MOST STUNNING SHAPES AND PATTERNS

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.'

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THE ENCHANTING FOREST OF FIREFLIES

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 .

THE UNDERWATER WONDERLAND

SEA LIFE and greenery in one shot show nature at its very best .

DAREDEVIL DIVERS HAVE A WHALE OF A TIME

SWIMMING next to 40 tonne whales, dare-devil divers take the plunge with these gentle giants of the sea .

INCREDIBLE PHOTOREALISTIC DRAWINGS CREATED WITH A BALLPOINT PEN

FROM a HOLLYWOOD actress to the face of an innocent child, these are incredible drawings with an unlikely twist .

FLYING PENGUINS LEAP OUT OF THE OCEAN

Leaping out of the ocean, a group of gentoo penguins fly through the air before landing safely on an iceberg .

AERIAL PICTURES OF FURTHER FLOODING AS HEAVY RAIN CONTINUES

An aerial view of flooding in Gloucestershire .

ABANDONED WILD WEST THEME PARK

The gunslingers are long gone and tumbleweeds have taken over at this abandoned American Wild West Theme Park in Cornwall .

LOOK, NO HANDS! MAN CONTROLS VEHICLE USING HIS BRAIN

A Birmingham man inspired by sci-fi film Wall-E, has created a one- wheeled vehicle, controlled by signals from his BRAIN .

SLAM DUNK DA FISH

THIS is the incredible moment a pelican throws a fish into the air and SLAM DUNKS it into its enormous throat sack .

PRAIRIE DOG AND STARLING STAND-OFF

This starling and prairie dog will not back down an inch as they have a fearsome stand-off over who gets to eat a nut .

CATERPILLAR AND MANTIS BATTLE IT OUT

A little caterpillar fearlessly scampers down a branch and confronts a praying mantis .

SECRET POOL IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT

HIDDEN in the middle of the Mojave Desert, a secret oasis awaits intrepid travellers .