Participants wearing historical costumes ride their high-wheel bicycles during the annual penny farthing race in Prague, Czech Republic November 5, 2016. (Photo by David W. Cerny/Reuters)

Firefighting teams try to extinguish an oil fire November 27, 2016 as smoke billows from one of the remaining oil wells set ablaze by ISIL in their retreat from Qayyarah at the start of the Mosul offensive which began more than a month prior. (Photo by Byron Smith/ZUMA Wire/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The People of Mah Meri tribe at home at Pulau Carey village on December 03, 2016 in Selangor, Malaysia. The Mah Meri people are one 18 tribes of Orang Asal (indigenous people) living in west Malaysia. The Mah Meri are know for thei wood carvings and also for the richness of their songs and dances. (Photo by Yuli Seperi/Sijori Images/Barcroft India)

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)

Border Security Force (BSF) “Daredevils” women motorcycle riders perform during a rehearsal for the Republic Day parade on a cold winter morning in New Delhi, January 10, 2018. (Photo by Adnan Abidi/Reuters)

Riot police stand guard behind a fire as refinery workers hold a blockade of the oil depot of Douchy-Les-Mines to protest against the government's proposed labour reforms, on May 25, 2016. Refinery workers stepped up strikes that threaten to paralyse France weeks ahead of the Euro 2016 tournament as the government moved to break their blockades, escalating a three-month tug-of-war over labour reforms. (Photo by François L.O./AFP Photo)

A woman lies to pose for her souvenir picture on the glass sightseeing platform on Shilin Gorge in Beijing, China, May 27, 2016. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)

A tourist poses next to a tiger before officials start moving tigers from Thailand's controversial Tiger Temple, a popular tourist destination which has come under fire in recent years over the welfare of its big cats in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, May 30, 2016. Wildlife authorities raid a Buddhist temple that has more than 100 tigers, taking away three cats and vowing to confiscate scores more in response to global pressure over wildlife trafficking. (Photo by Chaiwat Subprasom/Reuters)