TAXIDERMY ART BOOK

A KITTEN'S teaparty and rat's playing dominoes are the bizarre creations by one of Britain's great eccentrics pictured in an incredible new book. Other spookily compelling taxidermy images show a bird's funeral complete with casket, a kitten's wedding and a well-dressed stuffed monkey riding a goat. The stuffed curios were all created by Victorian Englishman Walter Potter, who originally displayed his strange taxidermy creatures to the awe-struck paying public from The White Lion Pub which doubled as his museum in Bramber, Sussex. Brought up in Bramber from 1835 and dying in 1918, Potter's museum continued to entertain until 1970, when it passed to the Jamaica Inn of Brighton. In 2003 the surviving collection was auctioned for half-a-million pounds to various buyers from across the world.

Other great stories
ADORABLE STOAT HUNTS IN THE SNOW

DASHING through the snow, this little stoat is on the lookout for a Christmas feast .

ADORABLE OWL EMBRACES THE 'RUNNING MAN' CHALLENGE

SKIPPING on the spot, an adorable little owl embraces the 'running man' challenge .

VETERAN BEATEN IN REMEMBRANCE WEEKEND ATTACK

A PENSIONER was left with a fractured jaw after being beaten and robbed outside his home in Birmingham last weekend .

SUNBATHING OTTER

A lazy otter finds the ideal spot to soak up the sun and sleep off his lunch .

DOG WITH A BONE

A puppy bit off more than he could chew when he stole a six inch Chinese spare rib from his owner and swallowed it WHOLE, Cheeky Staffordshire bull terrier Rossi had his life SPARED when he underwent a life-saving operation to remove the bone from his stomach after swiping part of the takeaway meal .

SIBLING RIVALRY

SURROUNDED by a snowstorm, these young polar bears battle the elements - as well as each other .

FREEZING MANATEES STRUGGLE TO STAY WARM

Swimming side by side with divers, these manatees will do anything they can to stay warm .

DRIVER TRAPPED UNDER 4x4 FOR AN HOUR IN HORRIFIC MOTORWAY CRASH

This was the chaotic scene when the driver of a 4x4 vehicle became periously trapped under his vehicle for an HOUR when it overturned after a crash on a busy motorway .

AMAZING LIGHTNING PHOTOGRAPHY

STRIKING photos capture nature at its most raw and powerful during Earth’s most electrifying event .

BASHFUL ORANGUTAN

A young orangutan comes over all shy as she hides her face behind a broken bucket .

PRAYING MANTIS MAKES AN UNLIKELY FRIEND

A brave praying mantis makes an unusual friend in an Oriental garden lizard .

FIGHTING BLACKBACK GORILLAS

FISTS fly as two gorillas take each other on in a dramatic battle .