BRITISH KINGFISHER SPLASH
BRITISH kingfishers love to cool off by creating a splash. During the sizzling summer days these kings of the river enjoy hunting for fish AND indulge in a dip at the same time. Stunning pictures show how the charismatic kingfisher dive bombs at speeds of up to 25-miles-per hour to catch their little fish prey. Pre-press operator Mark Bridger, 44, from West Malling in Kent took to the pictures while he was out rambling in the countryside. There are between 5,000 to 8,000 breeding pairs of kingfishers living in Britain at any one time. They live in the whole of the British Isles except west Ireland, the Outer Hebrides and the edge of northwest Scotland
Other great stories
BROTHER SEXUALLY ABUSED ME AGED 6 AND TOLD ME HE'D GET CANCER IF I DIDN'T LET HIM
Sophie Carr, 23, from Swindon, was just six when her older brother Alex, then 12, abused her during a game of mummies and daddies .
STRIPED MARLIN SPEARS ITS CATCH
A striped marlin means business as it spots lunch and spears a small fish .
GIRL GROWS BACK FACE AFTER ONE IN MILLION ALLERGIC REACTION
A teenage girl has grown back her entire face after being struck down by a rare skin disease .
KALEIDOSCOPIC CATHEDRALS AND CHURCHES
THESE kaleidoscopic-like photographs capture England’s churches and cathedrals in all their glory .
OWNER REUNITED WITH PETLOG CAT AFTER KEEPERS HAND HIM BACK
A family who were refused the location of their missing cat under the Data Protection Act have been reunited with their moggie after the keepers handed him back .
FROG FRIENDS
PERCHED on a branch, these two frogs hold hands as they look into the camera .
REAL LIFE ELF - WOMAN HAS EARS POINTED TO LOOK LIKE AN ELF
A Canadian woman who is obsessed with all things mythical has had her ears cut and shaped to look like an ELF .
THE SECRET LIFE OF SQUIRRELS
PICKING up a tiny tea-pot with its paws, a little red squirrel struggles to prepare its morning tea .
GENTLE WHALE SHARK GIANTS FEED UNDER FISHERMAN’S BOAT
A group of whale sharks gather to feed underneath a fisherman’s boat off the coast of Papua, Indonesia .
INTIMATE PORTRAITS OF AFRICAN TRIBES
A German photographer travelled around Africa where he met and photographed members of tribes in a series of intimate portraits .
BACKFLIPPING SHARK SOARS DURING SEAL HUNT
Exploding out of the water, a great white shark performs a backflip during a hunt for seals .
INDONESIAN TRIBE UNTOUCHED BY MODERN LIFE
An Italian photographer travelled to the highlands of New Guinea where he met an Indonesian tribe untouched by the modern world .