Sebastian Kennerknecht / Minden / South African Giraffe (Giraffa giraffa giraffa) female in Mopane (Colophospermum mopane) woodland, Kruger National Park, South Africa

Sebastian Kennerknecht / Minden / American Bison (Bison bison) female in winter, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Sergey Gorshkov / Minden / Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) feeding on Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix) female in winter, Finland

Chien Lee / Minden / Stick Insect (Monticomorpha flavolimbata) pair mating in mountains, Bengoh Range, Ecuador

Chien Lee / Minden / Madagascar Sucker-footed Bat (Myzopoda aurita) female, Fianarantsoa Province, Madagascar

Will Burrard-Lucas / A mating pair of leopards (Panthera pardus) caught in front of a camera trap at night, Laikipia Wilderness Camp, Kenya. Photographed with a camera trap. EDITORIAL USE ONLY. All other uses require clea...

Stephen Dalton / Orange tip butterfly (Anthocharis cardamines) male in flight amongst Lady's smock or Cuckooflower (Cardamine pratensis),England.

Shane Gross / Cunner (Tautogolabrus adspersus) pair in Eelgrass (Zostera marina) bed. Newfoundland, Canada. September.

Hermann Brehm / Lion (Panthera leo), females interacting, with cub, Masai Mara, Kenya

Mark MacEwen / Southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina), two females sleeping. St Andrews Bay, South Georgia. October.

Michael Hutchinson / Goldenrod crab spider (Misumena vatia) yellow female on Honesty flower, Bristol, UK, April

Sergey Gorshkov / Siberian tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) female territorial marking by rubbing cheek against ancient Manchurian fir tree, Land of the Leopard National Park, Far East Russia, November. Taken with remo...

Edwin Giesbers / Common red soldier beetle (Rhagonycha fulva) pair mating amongst flowers. The Netherlands. July.

Edwin Giesbers / Orange tip butterfly (Anthocharis cardamines), two females on Cuckooflower (Cardamine pratensis) in marshy grassland, egg visible on stem. April 2009.

Edwin Giesbers / Orange tip butterfly (Anthocharis cardamines) two females on Cuckooflower (Cardamine pratensis). The Netherlands. March.

Edwin Giesbers / Common blue damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum) pair in tandem with female ovipositing, reflected in water. September.

Suzi Eszterhas / Leopard (Panthera pardus) mother and cub age four months , Jao Reserve, Okavango, Botswana

Philippe Clement / Female Common kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) diving and catching a Nine-spined stickleback (Pungitius pungitius) fish, stuns and eats it, Belgium, June.

Simon Littlejohn / Pair of Griffon vultures (Gyps fulvus) mating, Andalusia, Spain, June.

Simon Littlejohn / Female Patagonian puma (Puma concolor patagonia) feeding on a Guanaco (Lama guanacoe) carcass, Torres del Paine National Park, Patagonia, Chile, July.

Simon Littlejohn / Female Patagonian puma (Puma concolor patagonica) dragging the carcass of a young Guanaco (Lama guanicoe), Torres del Paine National Park, Patagonia, Chile, July.

Simon Littlejohn / Close-up of a female Patagonian puma (Puma concolor patagonica) feeding on a Guanaco (Lama guanicoe) carcass, filmed with a remote camera, Torres del Paine National Park, Patagonia, Chile, May.

Simon Littlejohn / Close-up of a female European otter (Lutra lutra) and two juveniles feeding in a river, River Stour, Dorset, England, UK, June.

Simon Littlejohn / Female European otter (Lutra lutra) and two large pups playing and feeding in mid river, River Stour, Dorset, England, UK, June.

Dave Watts / Hoopoe (Upupa epops) male and female pair visiting nest to feed chicks, France

Brian Bevan / Male European cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) trying to mate with a decoy female, used as part of a scientific study, Bedfordshire, England, UK, May.

Brian Bevan / Male European cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) trying to mate with a decoy female, used as part of a scientific study, Bedfordshire, England, UK, May.

Brian Bevan / Male European cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) calling to another male, before flying off in response to a female, Bedfordshire, England, UK, May.

Konrad Wothe / Two male Lawes' parotia birds of paradise (Parotia lawesii) hopping on its display ground, with females watching nearby, Papua New Guinea.

Danny Green / North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) female and cub walking across snow, reflected in water. Yellowstone National Park, USA, January.

Danny Green / Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) female, portrait. Bandhavgarh National Park, India, December.

Danny Green / Sea otter (Enhydra lutris) female and pup playing. Alaska, USA, February.

Danny Green / Sea otter (Enhydra lutris) female and pup. Alaska, USA, February.

Tui De Roy / Galapagos hawk (Buteo galapagoensis) landing on mating pair of Galapagos giant tortoise (Chelonoidis vandenburgh) Alcedo Volcano, Isabela Island, Galapagos.

Nick Upton / Marsh harrier (Circus aeruginosus) female hunting among a panicked flock of Common teal (Anas crecca) in flight over marshland, RSPB Greylake Nature Reserve, Somerset, UK, December.

Ben Cranke / African fish eagle (Haliaeetus vocifer) attacking a female Saddle-billed Stork (Ephippiorhyncus senegalensis )trying to steal a fish it has just caught. Liuwa Plains National Park, Zambia

Ben Cranke / Snow leopard (Panthera uncia) female in snow, Hemis National Park, Ladakh, India

Sven Zacek / Ural Owl (strix uralensis) female with talons ready to attack a ringing ornithologist, Tartumaa county, Southern Estonia. May.

Nick Upton / Buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) queen about to land at her nest burrow in a garden lawn with loaded pollen sacs to provision grubs that will become future workers for her colony, Wiltshire,...

Matthew Maran / Red fox vixen (Vulpes vulpes) with two suckling cubs in an allotment, London, England, UK, May.

Matthew Maran / Red fox vixen (Vulpes vulpes) grooming a suckling cub in an allotment, London, England, UK, May.

Matthew Maran / Red fox vixen (Vulpes vulpes) with four suckling cubs in an allotment, one jumping over her back, London, England, UK, May.

Matthew Maran / Red fox vixen (Vulpes vulpes) with four suckling cubs in an allotment, cubs start to play, London, England, UK, May.

Magnus Lundgren / Pelagic blanket octopus (Tremoctopus gracilis) female in full display, off Anilao, Batangas Philippines, Pacific Ocean. Magnus

Michael Hutchinson / Flower crab spider (Misumena vatia) yellow female on Honesty flowers with house and garden visible, Bristol, UK, April

Matthew Maran / Close up of a Red fox vixen (Vulpes vulpes) grooming her five cubs at den entrance in an allotment, cubs begin to suckle, London, England, UK, April.

Matthew Maran / Red fox vixen (Vulpes vulpes) grooming and playing with her cubs in an allotment, London, England, UK, June.

Matthew Maran / Red fox vixen (Vulpes vulpes) feeding her cubs at entrance to den in an allotment, London, England, UK, April.