Nature Production / Bombardier Beetle (Pheropsophus jessoensis) protecting itself by ejecting a boiling, noxious chemical spray, Nagasaki, Japan.

Ole Jorgen Liodden / Arctic tern (Sterna paradisaea) attacking an Arctic Fox (Vulpes / Alopex lagopus) protecting its nest site, Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Norway. Highly commended, MAMMALS, GDT 2011 competition

Tim Laman / Canada goose (Branta canadensis) with gosling, a few days old. Massachusetts, USA. April.

Karine Aigner / Portrait of two female ecoguards/ rangers, Salonga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo. May 2017. There are 16 women who work as Ecoguards in Salonga National Park

Karine Aigner / Portrait of female ecoguard / ranger, with colleagues in Salonga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo. May 2017. There are 16 women who work as Ecoguards protecting the largely untouched 8.9 mi...

Karine Aigner / Portrait of female ecoguard / ranger Salonga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo. May 2017. There are 16 women who work as Ecoguards protecting the 8.9 million acres of Salonga National Park.

Robin Chittenden / Tufted grey langur (Semnopithecus priam priam) baby, Sri Lanka.

Stefan Christmann / Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) adult brooding chick with two additional chicks seeking protection while parents are at sea. Atka Bay, Antarctica. September.

Jen Guyton / Park ranger holding a Temminck's ground pangolin (Smutsia temminckii), after rescuing it from poachers. This individual was later released back into the wild. Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique.

Mary McDonald / Adult Mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei) holding baby, Hirwa group, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda

Emanuele Biggi / Peruvian Tarantula (Pamphobeteus sp.) and Humming Frog (Chiasmocleis royi) together, Los Amigos Biological Station, Madre de Dios, Amazonia, Peru. These species have a commensal relationship. The tara...

Emanuele Biggi / Peruvian Tarantula (Pamphobeteus sp.) adult, walking over Humming Frog (Chiasmocleis royi) without preying on it. Los Amigos Biological Station, Madre de Dios, Amazonia, Peru. These species have a com...

David Fleetham / Clark's anemonefish (Amphiprion clarkii), pair tending to egg mass placed beside the protection of an anemone. Yap, Micronesia.

David Fleetham / Ring-tailed cardinalfish (Ostorhinchus aureus), male protecting and incubating eggs in mouth, Philippines.

Claudio Contreras / Caribbean Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) chick under the wing of protective parent, breeding colony, Ria Lagartos Biosphere Reserve, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, June.Finalist in the Portfolio Category...

Lucas Bustamante / Coastal glassfrog (Cochranella litoralis) on leaf with eggs. San Lorenzo, Esmeraldas, Ecuador.

Tony Wu / Polar bear (Ursus maritimus) female with a single young cub, only a few months old, northern Svalbard, Norway, June

Neil Aldridge / African elephant (Loxodonta africana) baby looking out from the safety of beneath its mother's legs, Northern Tuli Game Reserve, Botswana. Vulnerable species. The African elephant is classified as vul...

Marie Read / Eared grebes (Podiceps nigricollis), pair, one adult feeding one of two chicks riding on the other adult's back, Bowdoin National Wildlife Refuge, Montana, USA

Marie Read / Eared grebes (Podiceps nigricollis), pair, one adult carrying food (damselfly) for two chicks riding on the other adult's back, Bowdoin National Wildlife Refuge, Montana, USA

Marie Read / Eared grebes (Podiceps nigricollis), pair, one adult feeding chick riding on the other adult's back, Bowdoin National Wildlife Refuge, Montana, USA

Tony Wu / Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) calf 'Tahafa' male with injured pectoral fin and scarred body, with mother. Vava'u, Tonga, Pacific Ocean.

Tony Wu / Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) female with calf, pursued by males during heat run. Vava'u, Kingdom of Tonga. Pacific Ocean.

Loic Poidevin / Grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) mother watching cub catching salmon, Katmai National Park, Alaska, USA, August

David Pattyn / Reticulated giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata) mother grooming baby, Samburu Game Reserve, Kenya, Africa, August.

Bence Mate / Graylag gosling (Anser anser) with parent, Lake Csaj, Kiskunsagi National Park, Pusztaszer, Hungary. April.

Jan Hamrsky / Case-building caddisfly larva (Trichoptera), Europe, June. Controlled conditions.

Markus Varesvuo / Female Capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus) with newly hatched chick on nest, Kuhmo, Finland, June.

Edwin Giesbers / Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus) baby sitting with mother, Gibraltar Nature Reserve, Gibraltar, June.

Claudio Contreras / Caribbean flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) adults guarding chick, Ria Lagartos Biosphere Reserve, Yucatan Peninsula Mexico, June

Jurgen Freund / Little red flying fox (Pteropus scapulatus) roosting with baby, Atherton Tablelands, Queensland, Australia. May. Second Place in the Man and Nature portfolio category of the Terre Sauvage Nature Image...

Fiona Rogers / Eastern chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurtheii) female 'Gremlin' aged 40 years holding female baby aged 2, her granddaughter. Gombe National Park, Tanzania. Gremlin took the new born baby from he...

Fiona Rogers / Eastern chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurtheii) female 'Gremlin' aged 40 years calling while holding her baby granddaughter aged 2 months and her own infant son aged 2 years. Gombe National Park,...

Cyril Ruoso / Man with Chamec spider monkeys (Ateles chamek) holding onto him as he walks through sanctuary. Ikamaperou Sanctuary, Amazon, Peru. October 2006.

Bruno D'Amicis / Fennec fox (Vulpes zerda) pup, aged a few weeks, caught in the wild and shown at a famous camel trekking site for tourists in the hope of either selling it or being paid for photos, Kebili Governorate...

Roy Mangersnes / Juvenile female Polar bear (Ursus maritimus) lying down protecting a seal carcass at sunset, Svalbard, Norway, March.

Krijn Trimbos / Great crested grebe (Podiceps cristatus) carrying chick while its mate approaches with food, Netherlands, May.

Krijn Trimbos / Great crested grebe (Podiceps cristatus) carrying chick on back, The Netherlands, May.

David Tipling / Common frog (Rana temporaria) and spawn in pond. West Runton, North Norfolk, England, UK, March. Highly commended in the Habitat category of the BWPA Awards 2015.

David Tipling / Common frogs (Rana temporaria) and spawn in pond, West Runton, North Norfolk, March.

MYN / Gil Wizen / Israeli sand cockroach (Heterogamodes hebraica) composite showing ventral and dorsal view of female, Central Coastal Plain, Israel, April. Focus-stacked. meetyourneighbours.net project

Theo Webb / Driver ant (Dorylus) large soldier guarding smaller ants, in Salonga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo.

Franco Banfi / Mother with young calf Sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) Dominica, Caribbean Sea, Atlantic Ocean.

David Pattyn / Great crested grebe (Podiceps cristatus) close-up of an adult with two young chicks. The Netherlands. June 2014

Aflo / Northern sea nettle (Chrysaora Melanaster) floating, with Mackerel fry ( Carangidae) Izu, Japan. January.

Pascal Kobeh / Group of Short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus) in open water, maybe the whole family with the male, the female and the calves, Costa Rica. Pacific ocean.

Pascal Kobeh / Female humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) with its very young calf at the surface, Rurutu island, Australs Archipelago, French Polynesia. Pacific Ocean.

Alex Hyde / Sheep sheltering from harsh weather behind a stone wall, Peak District National Park, Derbyshire, UK. March.