Joel Sartore / Photo Ark / A black phase critically endangered Indochinese leopard (Panthera pardus delacouri) snarling, Zoo Taiping, Malaysia. Captive.

Alex Hyde / Leaf-cutter ants (Atta cephalotes) carrying pieces of leaf that they have harvested back to their underground fungus garden in their nest, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica. Photographed in mobile field studi...

Alex Hyde / Leaf-cutter ants (Atta cephalotes) carrying pieces of leaf that they have harvested back to their underground fungus garden in their nest, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica. Photographed in mobile field studi...

Alex Hyde / Silk moth (Automeris zugana) sequence 1 of 2, photographed on a white background in mobile field studio, Cordillera de Talamanca mountain range, Caribbean Slopes, Costa Rica.

Alex Hyde / Silk moth (Automeris zugana) sequence 2 of 2, with wings open to reveal eyespots, a means of deterring predators, photographed on a white background in mobile field studio, Cordillera de Talamanca mou...

Nuno Sa / Long snouted seahorse (Hippocampus guttulatus) in captive breeding laboratory at University of Algarve, Portugal. June 2010. Overall winner of the Underwater Photographer of the Year competition 2015.

Eric Baccega / Young woman from the Bodi tribe displaying elaborate scarification on the skin of her back, Omo Valley, Ethiopia, March 2015.

MYN / Corne van der Linden / Wolf spider (Venator immansueta) Perth, South-Western Australia.

MYN / Corne van der Linden / Variety of orchids from the Banksia Woodland, Swan Coastal Plain. Including Pansy orchid (Diuris magnifica), Slender sun orchid (Thelymitra vulgaris), Cowslip orchid (Caladenia flava), Plain sun orchi...

MYN / Paul van Hoof / Great green bush-cricket (Tettigonia viridissima) female, The Netherlands, July. Meetyourneighbours.net project

Solvin Zankl / Deepsea Basket star (Gorgonocephalus lamarckii) specimen, from the North Atlantic near Iceland.

Solvin Zankl / Deepsea Viperfish (Chauliodus sloani) specimen from the North Atlantic near the North West of Spain, at a depth of 560-580m.

Solvin Zankl / Deepsea Octopus (Bathypolypus bairdii) specimen from the North Atlantic, near the Faroe Islands at a depth of 805m

Solvin Zankl / Illuminated netdevil (Linophryne arboritera), female specimen, from deepsea Atlantic Ocean near Cape Verde at a depth of 1900m.

Solvin Zankl / Deepsea Isopod (Glyptonotus antarcticus) from Antarctic Ocean at a depth of 231m.

Solvin Zankl / Deep sea squid (Histioteuthis corona) specimen, from deep sea Atlantic Ocean.

Solvin Zankl / Frilled shark (Chlamydoselachus anguineus) specimen with mouth open, from Atlantic Ocean, at a depth of 729m.

MYN / Tim Hunt / Composite of Caddisfly (Trichoptera) larva and cases, Worcestershire, England, UK, May.

Alex Hyde / Chlorophyte or green alga (Volvox aureus) in pond water. UK. The larger spheres are approximately 0.5mm in diameter. Digital composite image.

Pal Hermansen / Composite of flying butterflies (Lepidoptera) on sphere.

Pal Hermansen / Sprouting Soy beans (Glycine max) against white background

Pal Hermansen / Colourful corn (Zea mays) seeds against white background.

John Cancalosi / Brazilian agate, slice, with MR. Sad Face design.

MYN / Paul van Hoof / Common spadefoot toad (Pelobates fuscus) composite showing metamorphosis from larva to adult, The Netherlands, meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Marc Pihet / Seven spot ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata) composite showing take off, Maine-et-Loire, France, September. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Marc Pihet / Common wasp (Vespula vulgaris), Maine-et-Loire, France, November. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Gil Wizen / Comparison of larva and adult beetle (Epomis circumscriptus), Central Coastal Plain, Israel, April. Focus-stacked. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Gil Wizen / Soil centipede (Geophilidae sp), Caves Branch, Cayo District, Belize, September. Focus-stacked. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Gil Wizen / Huge terrestrial flatworm (Bipalium kewense), Mindo, Ecuador, March. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Gil Wizen / Long-snout weevil (Hammatostylus sp), Jatun Sacha Biological Station, Napo province, Amazon basin, Ecuador, March. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Gil Wizen / Long-faced grasshopper (Truxalis grandis), Central Coastal Plain, Israel, April. meetyourneighbours.net project

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

MYN / Gil Wizen / Two-tailed spider (Hersilia caudata) female, Central Coastal Plain, Israel, June. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Gil Wizen / Human botfly (Dermatobia hominis), adult and larva. Cayo District, Belize. Composite image. Meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Gil Wizen / Shield bug (Ventocoris falcatus) Central Coastal Plain, Israel Meetyourneighbours.net project

Christophe Courteau / Shore clingfish / Cornish sucker (Lepadogaster lepadogaster) portrait, Brittany, France, January.

Stephen Dalton / Close-up of holly leaf (Ilex aquifolium).

MYN / Dirk Funhoff / Lizard orchid flowers (Himantoglossum hircinum), Ilbesheim, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, May. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Lily Kumpe / Eucalyptus Leaf Composite (Eucalyptus sp) Denmark Shire, Warren Bioregion, Western Australia. Meetyourneighbtous.net project

MYN / Lily Kumpe / Composite of seashells from beach on Bali, Indonesia. Meetyourneighbtous.net project

Jane Burton / Blue and white Burmese-cross kitten rubbing against sooty-fawn dwarf Rex rabbit. NOT AVAILABLE FOR BOOK USE

Eric Baccega / Portrait of Naro San Bushman with leather headdress made of duiker skin, Kalahari, Ghanzi region, Botswana, Africa. October 2014.

Ross Hoddinott / Maple leaves backlit on lightbox, Broxwater, Cornwall, UK. November 2013.

Mark Taylor / Playful tabby male kitten, age 10 weeks.

Mark Taylor / French Bulldog sitting looking up, close up of muzzle

Mark Taylor / Bengal male cat stalking.

Mark Taylor / Red toy poodle looking up at camera an sticking out tongue.

Michael D. Kern / Kaleidoscope pattern formed from picture of Johnstons Chameleon (Chamaeleo johnstoni) face and legs. Restricted for Editorial use until December 2015