MINI BONZAI MODELS - TREE-MENDOUS

These are the fascinating pictures of miniature table sculptures molded around bonsai trees that take up to a painstaking 18 months to create. Japanese illustrator Takanori Aiba, 58, has built the intriguing scale models of windmills, lighthouses and even the Michelin Man.He delicately uses craft paper, plaster, acrylic resin, paint and plastic to create the host of sprawling miniature communities that wrap around the tiny trees.Following his work as an illustrator for Japanese fashion magazine POPYE he has spent the last nine years producing the detailed mini worlds.The creations take at least three months to construct with his Ice Cream Package Tower taking an astonishing 18 months work. Since 2003, he has made eight models, with 10 more planned over the next few years.

Other great stories
CHEETAH HUNT

Hot on the heels of a little rabbit, this cheetah is on a mission to catch his prey .

HILARIOUS PRANK ON URBAN EXPLORERS

A terrifying prankster has given unsuspecting urban explorers the fright of their lives .

MYSTERY OF THE CROOKED COTTAGE

THIS is the fascinating abandoned house, complete with mystery portraits and homely items, that has been dubbed - crooked cottage .

ON A WINGSUIT AND A PRAYER - FASTEST FLYING WOMAN IN THE WORLD

SOARING at 112 miles per hour through the air, this petite blonde certainly lives up to her title as the fastest flying woman in the world .

N-ICE DAY FOR A WHITE WEDDING: COUPLE WED ON GLACIER

When couples talk about wanting a white wedding, few will be referring to getting hitched on a glacier sat on top of an active volcano .

BEAR CUBS AND DOTING MUM

A little brown bear cub shows his doting mum that she is always on parent duty as he uses her as a scratching post .

MONSTROUS WAVES DWARF DARE-DEVIL SURFERS

Gigantic 100ft waves create the perfect playground for dare-devil surfers from across the world .

HUNGRY HERON STRUGGLES TO HOLD ONTO ITS CATCH

A DETERMINED great blue heron holds on tightly to its prey as the furry gopher attempts to wriggle free .

MENINGITIS TOT TAKES FIRST STEPS ON NEW LEGS

A little girl who lost all four limbs to meningitis has taken her first steps since the illness thanks to her new 'Princess legs' .

NOT FIT FOR DOGS - RSPCA RESCUERS FIND ANIMALS IN SHOCKING FILTH

It's incredible to think anyone could live in such horrendous squalor - yet two men have been prosecuted for keeping their homes in such revolting conditions that it was no longer fit for their animals .

THEY'RE BEHIND YOU!

SURROUNDED by tens of thousands of fish, this outnumbered diver is dwarfed by a mass of sea life .

WAVING SEAL PUP

RAISING his flipper, this two day old seal pup gives a wave to the camera .