SWALLOW WHOLE - YOUNG BIRD ENJOYS DINNER TIME
PERCHING on top of a gate, this young barn swallow waits patiently for his mum to return with dinner. The adult barn swallow arrives and hovers in mid-air, with an insect hanging from its beak. The six-legged treat is then delivered directly into the young bird’s open mouth, with the mother bird still hovering above. Wildlife photographer Menno Schaefer, of Zaandam, Netherlands, captured the moment during a trip to an open field in Spaarnwoude, a village north of Amsterdam.
Other great stories
TEST COULD HAVE SAVED ME FROM CERVICAL CANCER AT 20
A young woman has told how she has been robbed of her fertility and now faces an uncertain future after she was diagnosed with cervical cancer at the age of just 22 .
SMILEY GECKO POSES FOR THE CAMERA
WITH A wide smile plastered across his face, this little gecko is ready for his close up .
MESMERISING FIELD PATTERNS
FULL OF STUNNING colours and swirling shapes, the furrows on these fields create a mix of mesmerising patterns .
CHEEKY MONKEY KEEPS UP TO DATE WITH THE LATEST NEWS
A small Indian monkey is seemingly gob-smacked after reading the latest stock market news .
FUNERAL COMPANY MAKE DIAMONDS FROM CREMATED REMAINS
SPARKLING bright inside their box, it’s hard to believe these diamonds are made from the cremated remains of the deceased .
CARE WORKER WHO BROKE SPINE IN ‘SHINING’ SEX ATTACK CALLS FOR TOUGHER SAFETY MEASURES
A care worker who broke her spine after jumping from a window to escape a sex attack at the hands of a resident has called for tougher safety measures to protect care staff .
HYPNOTIST JAILED FOR SEX ABUSE
A hypnotherapist filmed himself sexually abusing a 19-year-old patient while she was in a trance-like state .
STUNNING WINTER PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE HIGHEST RAILWAY IN THE ALPS
ROLLING across a 65-metre-high viaduct in the Alps, the red carriages of the Bernina Express add a splash of colour to the spectacular snow-covered Swiss surroundings .
PUTIN'S TINY ARMY
Some parents would gasp at the thought of their children playing with a toy gun, but these Russian children are actually encouraged to take up real arms .
ATTEMPTED MURDER: EX PARTNER STABBED ME WITH A KNIFE IN BROAD DAYLIGHT - THANKFULLY GOOD SAMARITAN INTERVENED & SAVED MY LIFE
Marina Afonina, now 51, from Northampton, met Ioan Budea in 2006 .
HOUNDTON TABBY
FROM MRS Patmore to Lady Sybil, these barking mad illustrations show the WOOF-er side of some of our most loved Downton characters .
IRELAND'S HIDDEN BEAUTY
THE TOWERING Irish cliffs of Moher stand tall over the rippling Atlantic Ocean .