Without the use of any type of scuba equipment, divers descend to great depths armed with underwater guns, harpoons and strong line to stalk and hunt prey. Some of the best free-divers in the world can hold their breath for up to 5 minutes under water and go to depths greater than 100 feet.

(All photography © Eyeconic Images.)

“Sky burial or ritual dissection was once a common funerary practice in Tibet wherein a human corpse is cut in specific locations and placed on a mountaintop, exposing it to the elements or the mahabhuta and animals – especially to birds of prey. The location of the sky burial preparation and place of execution are understood in the Vajrayana traditions as charnel grounds. In Tibet the practice is known as jhator, which literally means, «giving alms to the birds»”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A burial master chops bones of a body to feed vultures during a celestial burial ceremony on April 19, 2006 in Dari County of Guoluo Prefecture, Qinghai Province, northwest China. Celestial burial is a traditional funeral of Tibetan people, which began in the 7th century. (Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)

“The fennec fox is a small nocturnal fox found in the Sahara of North Africa. Its most distinctive feature is unusually large ears. The name “fennec” comes from the Arabic word for fox, and the species name zerda has a Greek origin that refers to its habitat. The fennec is the smallest species of canid in the world; coat, ears and kidney functions have adapted to a high-temperature, low-water, desert environment. In addition, its hearing is sensitive enough to hear prey moving underground”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A Baby Fennec is seen at Sunshine International Aquarium on June 24, 2009 in Tokyo, Japan. The small nocturnal fox babies were born on May 17 2009. (Photo by Junko Kimura/Getty Images)

A beautiful snowy owl looks like she is flying above a cloud, but in fact she is gliding inches above a snowplain in a hunt for food. The owls fit in perfectly with their surroundings as both the male and female, which has darker markings on her feathers referred to as barres, hunt for voles. The female is so low to the ground she is almost touching it as she spots her prey in the snow. Nature photographer Rick Dobson captured the two birds hunting in corn fields near his home, just outside of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Rick Dobson/Solent News/SIPA Press)

These pictures show a rather annoying crow irritating an eagle. The crow tirelessly circles the bird of prey and repeatedly lands on his head – much to the crows displeasure. The encounter was spotted by Greaves Henriksen in Tamilnadu, India. The 52-year-old amateur photographer believes the eagle was sitting close to a nest, which the crow was trying to defend. Here: A crow lands on the eagles head much to the eagles displeasure. (Photo by Greaves B. Henriksen/Caters News Agency)

With their wings at full length, these beautiful golden eagles soar through the skies in a glorious training session to hunt their prey. Others sit on the arms of their owners and trainers. Batzaya Choijiljav, 41, from Mongolia has taken these magnificent pictures at the annual traditional Kazakhs festival, October 2015. (Photo by Batzaya Choijiljav/Caters News)

“Cassowaries are large, flightless birds related to emus and (more distantly) to ostriches, rheas, and kiwis”, writes Olivia Judson in the September issue of National Geographic magazine. How large? People-size: Adult males stand well over five foot five and top 110 pounds. Females are even taller, and can weigh more than 160 pounds. Dangerous when roused, they’re shy and peaceable when left alone. But even birds this big and tough are prey to habitat loss. The dense New Guinea and Australia rain forests where they live have dwindled. Today cassowaries might number 1,500 to 2,000. And because they help shape those same forests – by moving seeds from one place to another – “if they vanish”, Judson writes, “the structure of the forest would gradually change” too. (Photo by Christian Ziegler/National Geographic)