Animal Illusions45

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Two-headed giraffes! Phantom impala! Man-eating whales!

See how chance timing and spontaneous camera work has turned these mind-bending nature photographs into tricks of the eye...
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Tony Heald / Giraffes {Giraffa camelopardalis}, Etosha NP, Namibia

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Klein & Hubert / Two Chinstrap penguins (Pygoscelis antarcticus) climbing to rookery in spring, looking like one penguin with two sets of wings, Antarctica.

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Dr. Gertrud Neumann-Denzau / Two male Indian Wild Asses (Equus hemionus khur), looking like they share a single head, Little Rann of Kutch, Gujarat, SW India.

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Yva Momatiuk & John Eastcott / Impala (Aepyceros melampus) male at waterhole, with reflection of another male creating an optical illusion, Etosha National Park, Namibia

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Yva Momatiuk & John Eastcott / Impala (Aepyceros melampus) females drinking at waterhole in dry season, with reflection of male creating an optical illusion, Etosha National Park, Namibia

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Michael Pitts / Bull Elephant seal (Mirounga sp) portrait with penguin walking along beach, St Andrews Bay, South Georgia

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David Welling / Collared peccaries (Tayassu tajacu) interacting, two looking like one, Hidalgo Lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas, USA. (non-ex)

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Diane McAllister / Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) breaching in front of boat carrying tourists. Monterey Bay, California, USA.

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ZSSD / Red-headed Rock Agama (Agama agama) male jumping onto rock, native to Africa, San Diego Zoo, California

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Thomas Marent / Dracula Orchid (Dracula benedictii) flower, Las Orquideas Natural National Park, Colombia

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Michael Milicia/ BIA / Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) parent sheltering chicks, Massachusetts

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Staffan Widstrand / African savannah elephant (Loxodonta africana) hidden behind bush, trunk and tail visible, Marataba Private Reserve, Marakele National Park, Limpopo, South Africa

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Ingo Arndt / Water Boatman (Notonecta glauca) with reflection underwater, a true bug of the Heteroptera suborder, Europe

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Klein & Hubert / Two Harvest mice (Micromys minutus) investigating holes in Emmental cheese. Captive in studio.

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Klein & Hubert / Domestic pig (Sus scrofa domestica) sow swimming in the sea with mouth wide open and people in a zodiac. Bahamas

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David Allemand / Lappet-faced vultures (Torgos tracheliotu) looking like one double-headed bird, Etosha National Park, Namibia, Africa

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Jussi Murtosaari / Whooper swan (Cygnus cygnus), young bird feeding on water, looking like a rock in the water, Finland. Sequence 1 of 2.

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Jussi Murtosaari / Whooper swan (Cygnus cygnus), young bird on water, head raised, Finland. Sequence 2 of 2.

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Franco Banfi / Wild Alpine newt (Ichthyosaura alpestris) juvenile reflected on the water surface, Lago Nero, Pistoia, Tuscany, Italy.

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Alex Mustard / Snorkeller swimming with Stingless golden jellyfish (Mastigias sp.) in a landlocked marine lake in the middle of an island. Their golden colour comes from endosymbiotic algae, which provide nutrition...

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David Fleetham / California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) playing in a kelp forest off Santa Barbara Island, California, USA.

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Orsolya Haarberg,Orsolya Haarberg / Stoat (Mustela erminea) feeding on fish hanging from wire. In white winter coat. Vauldalen, Sor-Trondelag, Norway. April

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Stefan Christmann / Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) pair in courtship. Atka Bay, Antarctica. May.

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Eric Dragesco / Two Chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra) in snow, Gran Paradiso National Park, Italy.

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Claudio Contreras / Blue footed booby (Sula nebouxii) watching chick, Isabel Island National Park, Sea of Cortez (Gulf of California) Mexico.

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Staffan Widstrand / Wild Wonders of China / Taiwan blue magpie, (Urocissa caerulea), in Taipei, Taiwan, endemic species

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Mark Bowler / Sphinx hawk moth (Hemeroplanes triptolemus) caterpillar, snake mimic species, Amarakaeri Communal Reserve, Maijuna, Rio Napo, Peru

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Mark Bowler / Sphinx hawk moth (Hemeroplanes triptolemus) caterpillar, snake mimic species, Amarakaeri Communal Reserve, Maijuna, Rio Napo, Peru

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Mark Taylor / Forced perspective photo of a horse appearing to stand on a dog's back, UK.

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Mark Taylor / Forced perspective photo of a young woman appearing to stand / balance on a dog's nose, UK.

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Maxime Aliaga / Forced perspective photo of a giantwoman in the saltflats of Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia.

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Mark Taylor / Forced Perspective photo of a giant in the saltflats of Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia.

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Mary McDonald / South African / Cape giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis giraffa), two males necking / mock fighting, looking like a double headed animal, Zimanga Private Game Reserve, Zululand, South Africa.

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Konrad Wothe / Ostrich (Struthio camelus) male preening, looking headless, Samburu Reserve, Kenya, Africa

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Heather Angel / Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) parent feeding chick, another chick next to it looks headless, Antarctica

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Edwin Giesbers / Two Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) in snow, looking like a single double-headed animal, Norway. Captive

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Fabrice Cahez / Common crane (Grus grus) in flight, looking like it has two sets of wings, France. Wings of second individual visible in the background

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Shane Gross / Green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) swimming to take a breath, reflected in water surface. Eleuthera, Bahamas.

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Sandesh Kadur / Sambar (Rusa unicolor), Ranthambore National Park, Rajasthan, India. Antlers and ears of male visible behind female. Vulnerable species.