“The Rothschild Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis rothschildi) is among the most endangered giraffe subspecies with only a few hundred members in the wild. It is named after the famous family of the Tring Museum's founder, Lord Walter Rothschild, and is also known as the Baringo Giraffe, after the Lake Baringo area of Kenya, or as the Ugandan Giraffe. All of those that are living in the wild are in protected areas in Kenya and Uganda. (Recently it has been proposed that the Rothschild Giraffe is actually a separate species from other giraffes and not a giraffe subspecies).” – Wikipedia

Photo: Margaret, the 10-day-old Giraffestands beside Chester Zoo keeper Tim Rowlands on January 30, 2008, in Chester, England. Margaret is the first Rothschild giraffe born at the zoo. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

“The frilled shark (Chlamydoselachus anguineus) is one of two extant species of shark in the family Chlamydoselachidae, with a wide but patchy distribution in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. This uncommon species is found over the outer continental shelf and upper continental slope, generally near the bottom though there is evidence of substantial upward movements. It has been caught as deep as 1,570 m (5,150 ft), whereas in Suruga Bay, Japan it is most common at depths of 50–200 m (160–660 ft). Exhibiting several “primitive” features, the frilled shark has often been termed a «living fossil»”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A 1.6 meter long Frill shark swims in a tank after being found by a fisherman at a bay in Numazu, on January 21, 2007 in Numazu, Japan. The frill shark, also known as a Frilled shark usually lives in waters of a depth of 600 meters and so it is very rare that this shark is found alive at sea-level. It's body shape and the number of gill are similar to fossils of sharks which lived 350,000,000 years ago. (Photo by Awashima Marine Park/Getty Images)

Most people know Nikon as a purveyor of pro and consumer-grade digital cameras. But the company's expertise with optics bleeds over into related markets – it's one of the science community's major suppliers of microscopes. And each year the company asks the community to send it some of their favorite images of tiny objects. A panel of scientists and journalists have chosen the best of this past year's submissions, which Nikon has placed on its Small World site.

Photo: Honorable Mention. “Snow crystal, illuminated with colored lights (5x)”. (Photo by Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Department of Physics, Pasadena, California, USA)

“Einar Erici (1885–1965) was a physician by profession, working at a tuberculosis hospital in Stockholm, even running a private medical practice. He was by then the most renowned Swedish expert of church organs and organ builders, and his archival collection is today held by the Swedish National Heritage Board. This archive includes mostly writings, such as letters and manuscripts for published articles and essays, but also more than 2 000 black and white photos – original prints, glass plates and film negatives”. – Swedish National Heritage Board

Photo: Priest, Valamo Monastery, Karelia, Russia (then Finland), 1930s. Father Venerius with a birchbark basket. (Photo by Einar Erici)

“Sally Mann (born in Lexington, Virginia, 1951) is one of America’s most renowned photographers. She has received numerous awards, including NEA, NEH, and Guggenheim Foundation grants, and her work is held by major institutions internationally. Her many books include Second Sight (1983), At Twelve (1988), Immediate Family (1992), Still Time (1994), What Remains (2003), Deep South (2005), Proud Flesh (2009), and The Flesh and the Spirit (2010). A feature film about her work, What Remains, debuted to critical acclaim in 2006. Mann is represented by Gagosian Gallery, New York. She lives in Virginia”.

Photo: Candy Cigarette, 1989. (Photo by Sally Mann)

Kyaiktiyo Pagoda, also known as Golden Rock is a well-known Buddhist pilgrimage site in Mon State, Burma. It is a small pagoda (7.3 metres (24 ft)) built on the top of a granite boulder covered with gold leaves pasted on by devotees. According to legend, the Golden Rock itself is precariously perched on a strand of the Buddha's hair. The balancing rock seems to defy gravity, as it perpetually appears to be on the verge of rolling down the hill. The rock and the pagoda are at the top of Mt. Kyaiktiyo. It is the third most important Buddhist pilgrimage site in Burma after the Shwedagon Pagoda and the Mahamuni Pagoda. A glimpse of the "gravity defying" Golden Rock is believed to be enough of an inspiration for any person to turn to Buddhism.

Farmers use tractors and burn tires, hay and manure as they block the highway between Morlaix and Brest during a demonstration against the market prices of their product, on July 22, 2015 in Morlaix, western of France. French farmers protesting over falling food prices threatened to step up blockades of cities, roads and tourist sites, as the government prepared to unveil emergency aid for them. Farmers have dumped manure in cities, blocked access roads and motorways and hindered tourists from reaching Mont St-Michel in northern France, one of France's most visited sites. (Photo by Fred Tanneau/AFP Photo)