“Yucca is a genus of perennial shrubs and trees in the agave family, Agavaceae. Its 40-50 species are notable for their rosettes of evergreen, tough, sword-shaped leaves and large terminal panicles of white or whitish flowers. They are native to the hot and dry (arid) parts of North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. Early reports of the species were confused with the cassava (Manihot esculenta). Consequently, Linnaeus mistakenly derived the generic name from the Carib word for the latter, yuca. It is also colloquially known in the midwest United States as “Ghosts in the graveyard”, as it is commonly found growing in rural graveyards and when in bloom the flowers appear as an apparition floating.” – Wikipedia

Photo: A yucca standing among flowers bursts forth a very large stalk of flowers as a heavy wildflower bloom on June 21, 2005 in the Angeles National Forest northwest of La Canada, California. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)

A mermaid poses under water during a shoot with photographer Brett Stanley during MerMagic Con at the Freedom Aquatic Center in Manassas, Virginia on August 7, 2021. MerMagic Con is advertised as the largest Mermaid convention in the world. Some parts of the convention are based on modeling and looks like the Miss Mermaid USA Pageant. The Society of Fat Mermaids looks to bring together plus size people and promote the idea that anyone can become a mermaid. Becoming a mermaid is not cheap, most merfolk spend thousands of dollars on their tail and outfit. Most tails are custom made out of silicone and others are foam and fabric. (Photo by Joseph Prezioso/AFP Photo)

Behaviour: Mammals category. Giant Gathering by Tony Wu, USA. Dozens of sperm whales mingled noisily off Sri Lanka’s northeast coast, stacked as far down as Tony could see. This was a congregation of dozens of social units, like a gathering of the clans. Aggregations like this could be a critical part of the whales’ rich social lives but are rarely reported. Some two thirds of the population was wiped out before commercial whaling was banned in 1986. This kind of major gathering could be “a sign that populations are recovering”, says Tony. (Photo by Tony Wu/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2017)

A bodypainter uses UV paint to create electrifying masterpieces of stunning landscapes on models. John Poppletons vibrant Bodyscapes feature bright savannahs, lightning storms and vivid galaxies leaping from the bodies of his subjects. The artist, who lives in Wellsville in Utah, USA, uses a black light on his paintings to make them look as close to real life as possible. He predominantly uses female models and often paints across their backs to give him the largest surface area to work with. Here: “Bamboo Mist”. (Photo by John Poppleton/Caters News)

The spectacular sequence shows the divers reaching out and even petting the 1,000-pound predators as the inquisitive beasts happily pose for the camera. Other pictures show the sharks appearing to swim with the divers as they move towards the water’s surface. The photographs were taken at Tiger Beach, Grand Bahama by photographer, Steve Hinczynski (49) from Venice, Florida, USA. To take his images Steve used a Canon 7D Mark II camera equipped with Ikelite underwater housing. (Photo by Steve Hinczynski/Mediadrumworld)

Aerial view huge cliff rockfall at East Cliff at West Bay in Dorset, UK which happened overnight and has blocked the beach below on December 30, 2024. Golfers can be seen playing on the 15th green at Bridport & West Dorset Golf Club which is next to the latest landslip. The cliff has had frequent rockfalls in the past year which forced Dorset Council at the beginning of 2024 to close the South West Coast Path which runs along the top of the cliff due to safety concerns. (Photo by Graham Hunt/BNPS)

Though finger painting is normally associated with tempera paint and messy classroom art projects, Iris Scott is quickly changing what "finger painting" brings to mind. Wearing surgical gloves and painting with high grade oils, Iris achieves a whirlwind of crisscrossing color strokes and a vibrant impressionistic style. Since 2009, when Iris first began finger painting in Taiwan, her artistic career has caught her by surprise. Grateful for a new global market of online art collectors, Iris has shipped to Dubai, Ireland, and all over the USA.