Stephen Dalton / Indian leaf butterfly (Kallima paralekta) in flight.

Stephen Dalton / Barn owl (Tyto alba) in flight approaching bell-tower, carrying rodent prey to young in nest. Sussex, UK.

Stefan Christmann / Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes fosteri) male peering out, looking over the huddle during polar night, Antarctic winter, Atka Bay, Antarctica. July. Bookplate.

Sue Flood / Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) walking with young chick at Snow Hill Island rookery, Antarctica. October.

Sue Flood / Emperor penguins (Aptenodytes forsteri) with young chick at Snow Hill Island rookery, Antarctica. October.

Sue Flood / Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) chick flapping wings, Snow Hill Island rookery, Weddell Sea, Antarctica. November.

Sue Flood / Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) feeding chick, Weddell Sea, Antarctica.

Emanuele Biggi / Predatory bush cricket (Saga pedo) waiting for prey on Eryngium, Italy. June. Vulnerable species.

Emanuele Biggi / Great Fen / Raft spider (Dolomedes plantarius), adult female eating an invasive species of fish, Western mosquitofish, (Gambusia affinis), Alessandria, Italy, August.

Robert Thompson / Elephant hawk moth (Deilephila elpenor) portrait, Brackagh Moss National Nature Reserve, Portadown, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. April.

Robert Thompson / Garden tiger moth (Arctia caja) Killard Point NNR, Ballyhornan, County Down, Northern Ireland.July.

Robert Thompson / Large red damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula) Brackagh Moss NNR, Portadown, Co. Armagh, Northern Ireland. May.

Robert Thompson / Hawthorn berries (Crataegus monogyna) Brackagh Moss NNR, Portadown, Co. Armagh, Northern Ireland.

Robert Thompson / Common wasp (Vespula vulgaris) flying to fuchsia flower, Banbridge, County Down, Northern Ireland.

Robert Thompson / Sawfly larvae (Nematus pavidus) defensive posture, Peatlands Park, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. September.

Mark Carwardine / Grey whale (Eschrichtius robustus) at water surface with mouth open showing baleen plates, San Ignacio Lagoon, Baja California, Mexico

Neil Aldridge / Black-backed Jackal (Canis mesomelas) pups waiting at their den on Mashatu Game Reserve, Tuli, Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Two adult African jacanas (Actophilornis africanus) flying over reedbeds, Selinda Spillway, northern Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / African fish eagle (Haliaeetus vocifer) flying, Selinda Spillway, northern Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / African fish eagle (Haliaeetus vocifer) standing on the banks of the Chobe River, Chobe National Park, Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Portrait of an African darter (Anhinga rufa) on the Chobe River, Chobe National Park, Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Yellow-billed stork (Mycteria ibis) catching a young barbel or catfish in the shallows of the Chobe River, Chobe National Park, Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Yellow-billed oxpecker (Buphagus africanus) perched on the back of an African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) on the banks of the Chobe River, Chobe National Park, Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / White rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) calf keeping close to its mother on Kariega Game Reserve, South Africa.

Neil Aldridge / White rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) female 'Thandi' silhouetted against the sunset, Kariega Game Reserve. South Africa. Thandi's horns were taken in a brutal attack by poachers.

Neil Aldridge / White-backed vultures (Gyps africanus) feed on a wildebeest carcass, Chobe, Botswana, August.

Neil Aldridge / Warthog (Phacochoerus africanus) with a Yellow-billed oxpecker (Buphagus africanus) on its back, nuzzling its mother at a waterhole, Chief's Island, Okavango Delta, Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Vervet monkey (Chlorocebus pygerythrus) yawning while sitting on a fallen tree in forests, Limpopo River, Kruger National Park, South Africa.

Neil Aldridge / Steenbok (Raphicerus campestris) female standing framed by a fallen tree, Mapungubwe National Park, Limpopo Province, South Africa.

Neil Aldridge / Squacco heron (Ardeola ralloides) flying over reedbeds, Selinda Spillway, northern Botswana. August.

Neil Aldridge / Spotted hyaena (Crocuta crocuta) reassuring her tiny pup at the entrance to their den, Northern Tuli Game Reserve, Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Spotted hyaena (Crocuta crocuta) exploring the skeleton of an elephant, Selinda Spillway, northern Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Portrait of an adult Spotted eagle owl (Bubo africanus) Table Mountain National Park, South Africa.

Neil Aldridge / Sable antelope (Hippotragus niger) bull charging through the shallows of the Selinda Spillway, with another behind, northern Botswana, August.

Neil Aldridge / Red lechwe (Kobus leche) standing on an island, Zibadianja Lagoon, Selinda Reserve, northern Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Plain's zebra (Equus quagga) biting the neck of a rival during a fight Hluhluwe imfolozi Park. South Africa.

Neil Aldridge / Plain's zebra (Equus quagga) close up of face, Kariega Game Reserve. South Africa.

Neil Aldridge / Pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis) erupts from the water after an unsuccessful dive into the Chobe River, Chobe National Park, Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Nile crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus) snatching a Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) in its jaws, Shingwedzi River, Kruger National Park, South Africa.

Neil Aldridge / Nile crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus) resting in the sun on a grassy island in the middle of the Chobe River, northern Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Martial eagle (Polemaetus bellicosus) preening itself after a summer rainstorm in the central district, Kruger National Park. South Africa. Vulnerable species.

Neil Aldridge / Lion cub (Panthera leo) calling to its mother from the raised deck of a tourist lodge in the middle of the Busanga Plains, Kafue National Park, Zambia. Vulnerable species.

Neil Aldridge / Lion cub (Panthera leo) playfully attacking its mother as she drags her puku antelope prey across burnt Busanga Plains, Kafue National Park, Zambia. Vulnerable

Neil Aldridge / African lion (Panthera leo) male lying in the middle of the Busanga Plains, Kafue National Park, Zambia. Vulnerable

Neil Aldridge / Lioness (Panthera leo) yawning in early morning light on Kariega Game Reserve, South Africa.

Neil Aldridge / African lion (Panthera leo) male glancing over its shoulder on Northern Tuli Game Reserve, Botswana. Vulnerable species. This lion was shot illegally by South African farmers shortly after the photogr...

Neil Aldridge / Lesser masked weaver (Ploceus intermedius) male hanging upside down from the entrance, Northern Tuli Game Reserve, Botswana.

Neil Aldridge / Leopard (Panthera pardus) charging down a dry riverbank during an evening hunt, Northern Tuli Game Reserve, Botswana. November.