VIBRANT WOODPECKER FEEDS HER YOUNG

A middle spotted woodpecker swoops into her nest and feeds her young in a forest in Trentino, Italy. Jacopo Rigotti, of Val Di Cembra, Trento, Italy, photographed the bird as she flew towards her nest, located in the trunk of a black pine tree, before feeding her hungry chicks a beakful of insects. The 25-year-old photographer says: "I decided to set up the camera on a tripod at the base of the tree, along with a flash that would help to prevent shadows in the photographs."

Other great stories
BLIND MAN BEATEN WITH BRICK FOR SAYING HELLO

A BLIND man was battered with a brick in a sickening attack by two thugs .

COLOURFUL FROGS PRACTICE THEIR FROG CRAWL

GLIDING through the water, these delightful frogs show off their vibrant colours as they practice their FROG crawl .

RELAXING SNOW MONKEY

WITHOUT A care in the world, this little snow monkey puts his feet up and settles in for a snooze .

OWLS PLAY TUG-OF-WAR

TUGGING on the wing of his sibling, this needy owl is after some attention .

SUNBATHING OTTER

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

RARE BRONTE POEM FETCHES £92K AT AUCTION

A rare manuscript of one of Charlotte Bronte’s earliest poems went under the hammer today and fetched nearly £100,000 – double what it was expected to get .

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 .

FROZEN IN TIME LIGHTHOUSE

This frozen lighthouse in Michigan could easily be mistaken for a still from the snow swept disaster movie The Day After Tomorrow .

HUMAN CCTV COP BUSTS 130 CRIMINALS

Meet the human CCTV: a PCSO with a memory for faces so sharp he has apprehended more than 130 suspects in the last year alone with his eagle eyed talents .

CATERPILLAR AND MANTIS BATTLE IT OUT

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

UNLIKELY PLAYMATES: BRAVE CHICKS PLAY WITH A PYTHON

A pair of chicks bravely decided to befriend a python, despite being the snake's favourite choice of food .

HORSE BEFRIENDS ADOPTED CAT

Going for long rides through vast fields together, this twosome share an unbreakable bond .