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.
An adorable black bear cub struggles to find the perfect spot for an afternoon nap as he wriggles around on the branch of a maple tree .
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 .
A proud gorilla mum welcomes her newborn baby western lowland gorilla, a critically endangered species .
At least three people have been killed and more than 100 injured, some seriously, in two explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon .
GUITARISTS that want to lay down some slick licks will soon be able to get their hands on a brand new guitar - made from oil cans .
Housands of cushions handmade as gifts for Olympics athletes may go to waste after London 2012 KNITWITS stitched up volunteers by refusing to allow them to hand them out .
From foster care to the MAGICAL world of cosplay, a young girl’s dreams become reality after being adopted by a photography loving couple .
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 .
A disabled sheep is enjoying a new fleece of life after receiving a specially-designed wheelchair .
Marina Afonina, now 51, from Northampton, met Ioan Budea in 2006 .
A proud stag attempts to impress the females by donning an enormous fern headdress in London's Bushy Park .
The view from this rooftop pool is sure to make most holidaymakers envious .