Wim van den Heever / Ancient dead Camelthorn tree (Vachellia erioloba) trees with red dunes, Namib desert, Deadvlei, Sossusvlei, Namibia. August 2015.

Wim van den Heever / Ancient dead Camelthorn tree (Vachellia erioloba) trees with red dunes and mist, Namib desert, Deadvlei, Sossusvlei, Namibia. August 2015.

Wim van den Heever / Ancient dead Camelthorn trees (Vachellia erioloba) with red dunes, and star trails, Namib desert, Sossusvlei, Namibia. Composite.

Wim van den Heever / Ancient dead Camelthorn trees (Vachellia erioloba) with red dunes and the milky way behind, Namib desert, Sossusvlei, Namibia. Composite.

Wim van den Heever / Ancient dead Camelthorn trees (Vachellia erioloba) at night with red dunes behind. Namib desert, Sossusvlei, Namibia. Composite.

Wim van den Heever / Ancient dead Camelthorn trees (Vachellia erioloba) with sand dunes, Namib desert, Deadvlei, Sossusvlei, Namibia.

Wim van den Heever / Ancient dead Camelthorn trees (Vachellia erioloba) with sand dunes, Namib desert, Deadvlei, Sossusvlei, Namibia.

Pascal Pittorino / Mimosa (Acacia dealbata) flowers covered in snow , Var, Provence, France, February

David Kjaer / Duke of Burgundy butterfly (Hamearis lucina), Wiltshire, UK, June.

Enrique Lopez-Tapia / Spiny tree trunk (Pachypodium sp) Berenty Reserve, Madagascar.

Tony Phelps / Boomslang (Dispholidus typus) Immature male hunting in thorn bush above deHoop Vlei, Western Cape, South Africa, December

Nick Garbutt / Masai Giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) on open plains browsing Whistling Thorn Acacia (Acacia drepanolobium). Slopes of the Ngorongoro Highlands with the Serengeti Plains beyond, Tanzania. (Digitally...

Tony Heald / Eland (Taurotragus oryx) males locking horns and fighting. Devil's Thorn flowers (Tribulus terrestris) cover the ground. Etosha National Park, Namibia, January.

Tony Heald / Eland (Taurotragus oryx) male horning the ground which is covered in Devil's Thorn flowers (Tribulus terrestris). Etosha National Park, Namibia, January.

Tony Heald / Zebra (Equus quagga) foal running through Devil's Thorn flowers (Tribulus terrestris). Etosha National Park, Namibia, January.

Tony Heald / Spotted Hyaena (Crocuta crocuta) rolling in Devil's Thorn flowers (Tribulus terrestris). Etosha National Park, Namibia, January.

Sharon Heald / Black-faced Impala (Aepyceros melamis petersi) male standing in a field of Devil's Thorn flowers (Tribulus terrestris). Etosha National Park, Namibia, January.

Alan Watson / Baobab tree (Adansonia rubrostipa) and Sogno (Didierea madagascariensis) in spiny forest, Reniala Reserve, Madagascar

Robert Thompson / Early thorn moth (Selenia dentaria) camouflaged as dead leaf on stem, Argory, County Armagh, Northern Ireland, UK, March

Philippe Clement / Devil's thorn (Tribulus zeyheri) the Kalahari desert's prominent creeper, appearing after the rains, Kgalagadi NP, South Africa

Anup Shah / Female patas monkey {Erythrocebus patas} feeding on acacia ants, Kenya.

Francois Savigny / African elephant feeding on thorn tree, Moremi, Botswana

Richard Du Toit / Cape Weaver (Ploceus capensis) male perching on thorny branch, Garden Route National Park, South Africa

Gerry Ellis / Umbrella Thorn (Acacia tortilis) trees at sunrise on savannah, Masai Mara, Kenya

Gerry Ellis / Whistling Thorn (Acacia drepanolobium) and moon, Amboseli National Park, Kenya

Gerry Ellis / Whistling Thorn (Acacia drepanolobium) tree over savannah, Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya

Mark Moffett / Ant (Pseudomyrmex sp) gathers carrot-like growths from Whistling Thorn (Acacia drepanolobium) acacia tree for delivery to larva in nest, in return for baby food, ant protects Acacia, Costa Rica

Mark Moffett / Ant (Pseudomyrmex sp) gathers carrot-like growths from Whistling Thorn (Acacia drepanolobium) acacia for delivery to larva in nest, in return for baby food Ant protects Acacia, Costa Rica

Mark Moffett / Ant (Pseudomyrmex sp) group drink nectar from Whistling Thorn (Acacia drepanolobium) acacia tree and protect the tree from leaf eating enemies ensuring mutual survival, Costa Rica

Shin Yoshino / Whistling Thorn (Acacia drepanolobium) trees, Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya

Mitsuaki Iwago / Masai Giraffe (Giraffa tippelskirchi) feeding on Whistling Thorn (Acacia drepanolobium) acacia tree, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

Mitsuaki Iwago / Whistling Thorn (Acacia drepanolobium) tree on savannah at sunset, Serengeti

Robin Chittenden / Dusky thorn moth (Ennomos fuscantaria) resting on tree branch, Norwich, UK. July. Stacked.

Ashley Cooper / Gunnera (Gunnera tinctoria) leaf close up, Holehird Gardens, Windermere, Lake District National Park, Cumbria, UK. July.

Ugo Mellone / Acacia tree and dunes below the northern slopes of Djebel Ouarkziz, Sahara desert, Southern Morocco, Africa. February, 2020.

Ugo Mellone / Acacia tree and dunes below the nothern slopes of Djebel Ouarkziz, Sahara desert, Southern Morocco, Africa. February, 2020.

David Pattyn / A female Red-backed shrike (Lanius collurio) perchedamongst thorns of a Bramble (Rubus sp), Prespa lake area, Greece, July.

Uri Golman / Close up of an African elephant (Loxodonta africana) amongst thorny Acacia branches, Mara North Conservancy, Kenya. July.

Robin Chittenden / Cetti's warbler (Cettia cetti) perched on thorny branch, Thorpe Marshes Norwich UK, April.

Robin Chittenden / Tree sparrow (Passer montanus) perched on thorny branch, Bempton Cliffs, Yorkshire, UK, May.

Robin Chittenden / Linnet (Carduelis cannabina) perched on a thorny branch, Suffolk UK April.

Stephen Dalton / Purple thorn moth (Selenia tetralunaria) on wooden furniture, England, UK.

Denis-Huot / Termite hill and acacia tree, Shaba national reserve, North Kenya

Denis-Huot / Termite hill and acacia tree, Shaba National Reserve, North Kenya