While communism, collectivism, worms, dry rot and casual looting failed to destroy the majestic wooden churches of Russia, it may be ordinary neglect that finally does them in. Dwindled now to several hundred remaining examples, these glories of vernacular architecture lie scattered amid the vastness of the world’s largest country. Just over a decade ago, Richard Davies, a British architectural photographer, struck out on a mission to record the fragile and poetic structures. Austerely beautiful and haunting, “Wooden Churches: Traveling in the Russian North” (White Sea Publishing; $132) is the result. Covering thousands of miles, Mr. Davies described how he and the writer Matilda Moreton tracked down the survivors from among the thousands of onion-domed structures built after Prince Vladimir converted to Christianity in 988.

Wedges of an orange generate enough current and electrical juice – 3.5 volts – to power an LED. The fruit’s citric acid helps electrons flow from galvanized nails to copper wire in this 14-hour exposure. This image was published in September’s Visions of Earth, a trio of photos that appear in each issue of National Geographic. (Photo by Caleb Charland/National Geographic)

Adorable creations of Canadian illustrator Hyemi Jeong, based in Toronto, who is having fun with the small everyday objects with cute and creative illustrations.

A Hindu priest waits to perform prayers next to Tejas, India's first locally-built Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), before its induction into the Indian Air Force at the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Airport in Bengaluru, India, July 1, 2016. (Photo by Abhishek N. Chinnappa/Reuters)

A prototype battery-powered plane, called Greased Lightning or GL-10 is pictured flying at NASA's Langley Research Center in this undated handout photo obtained by Reuters May 1, 2015. The plane, which has 10 engines and can take off like a helicopter and fly efficiently like an aircraft, is currently in the design and testing phase. (Photo by Reuters/NASA)

People walk past debris on May 3, 2015 in Bhaktapur, Nepal. A major 7.8 earthquake hit Kathmandu mid-day on Saturday, and was followed by multiple aftershocks that triggered avalanches on Mt. Everest that buried mountain climbers in their base camps. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

The figure of an eight-year-old boy is seen inside a suitcase on a Spanish civil guard scanner screen at the border between Morocco and Spain's north african enclave Ceuta, Spain in this handout photo released May 8, 2015. A 19-year-old woman was arrested May 7, 2015 for the attempted smuggling of the boy, who was checked by medics and handed over to juvenile prosecutors office, according to authorities. (Photo by Reuters/Ministerio Del Interior)

Performers are reflected in a displayed vehicle before going onto the stage during the Auto China 2016 auto show in Beijing, China, April 29, 2016. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)