Wasibi, (r), yawns at backstage before the Algonquin Hotel’s Annual Cat Fashion Show in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., August 1, 2019. The theme of this year's show was “It's a Small World”. The cats represented countries including Ireland, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States. (Photo by Jeenah Moon/Reuters)

Shortlisted: “Two big eyes” by Miao Yong (Zejiang province, China). Damselflies look over the leaves. “I was photographing insects in a park near my home when suddenly I found two damselflies in the grass. They kept flying and it was very difficult to focus until suddenly they parked behind a leaf”. (Photo by Miao Yong/2017 Royal Society of Biology Photographer of the Year)

A quake-resistant dome house decorated with Japan's popular “Kumamon” bear character is pictured at the Aso Farm Land resort in Aso, Japan on November 6, 2017. Cabins modelled after Japanese sweets and made from polystyrene foam withstood last year's deadly earthquakes in Kumamoto prefecture. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and these striking images of 2017 are no exception. The photo highlights include incredible snapshots of the natural world as well as some awesome animal and human encounters. The vibrant gallery also shows thrill-seekers pushing themselves to the limit with breathtaking stunts captured in perfect clarity. The pictures have been taken by a host of photographers from around the world. Here: The two lion cubs singing their hearts out at Antelope park in Zimbabwe. (Photo by David Jenkins/Caters News Agency)

(L-R) Playmates Monica Sims, Heather Rae Young and Hiromi Oshima attend the Playboy party with TAO at Spire Nightclub on February 4, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Christopher Polk/Getty Images for Playboy)

In this March 22, 1975 file photo, a refugee clutches a baby as a government helicopter gunship carries them away near Tuy Hoa, Vietnam, 235 miles northeast of Saigon. They were among thousands fleeing from Communist advances. AP Photographer Nick Ut will be retiring from the AP in March 2017 after 51 years of taking photographs from the front lines of the Vietnam War to the red carpets of Hollywood. (Photo by Nick Ut/AP Photo)

In this April 4, 2017 photo, Zoologist Martha Llanes caresses baby chimpanzee Anuma II, left, while Ada hangs on to her leg, at Llanes' apartment in Havana, Cuba. She has forgiven them every transgression. It's hard to stay angry at a baby chimpanzee when it clambers up your leg and into your arms and plants a kiss on your cheek in a plea for forgiveness. (Photo by Ramon Espinosa/AP Photo)

Gray whale feeding at the surface and showing it's baleen. (Photo by Christopher Swann/Biosphoto)