Rick Sorenson, owner of the Rio Ramaza Marina, wades in the Sacramento River after securing an old paddlewheel boat on his property as the river makes its way up the levee on Garden Highway in Sacramento, Calif., Monday, January 9, 2017. (Photo by Hector Amezcua/The Sacramento Bee via AP Photo)

The National Geographic Photo Ark is a travelling exhibition of photographer Joel Sartore’s quest to create a photo archive of biodiversity around the world. So far, Sartore has captured studio portraits of more than 6,000 species – a number that he hopes to double. On 1 July, the ark will open at Melbourne zoo – the first time it has been exhibited in the southern hemisphere. More than 50 portraits will be on display, including many of Australian endangered animals being protected by programs at the zoo itself. These captions have been edited from text supplied by Melbourne zoo. Here: Barking owl. (Photo by Joel Sartore/National Geographic Photo Ark/The Guardian)

Trialist Pavel Prikhodko attempts to pull an An-2 plane as a cat walks nearby during a charity event near the village of Tatarka in Stavropol Region, Russia on December 27, 2020. (Photo by Eduard Korniyenko/Reuters)

A woman wearing a face mask walk through Shinjuku area on January 07, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is set to declare a state of emergency in Tokyo and neighboring three prefectures, Kanagawa, Saitama, and Chiba on Thursday, following the recent surge in COVID-19 cases in the region. Tokyo saw over 2000 new cases per day for the first time on January 7, 2021. (Photo by Yuichi Yamazaki/Getty Images)

A model presents a creation by Kashee's during Bridal Festive Fashion show in Karachi on August 18, 2022. (Photo by Asif Hassan/AFP Photo)

This photo provided by the North Korean government shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, is surrounded by performers during a celebration marking the nation's 74th anniversary in Pyongyang, North Korea, on September 8, 2022. (Photo by Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP Photo)

A snowman is seen by the side of a road as snow falls on the hills around the Bay Area while a massive winter storm passes along the west coast, delivering some snow, freezing rains, and gusty winds around, near San Jose, California, U.S., February 23, 2023. (Photo by Carlos Barria/Reuters)

A police officer points his gun while confronting a gang during a protest against Prime Minister Ariel Henry's government and insecurity, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on March 1, 2024. (Photo by Ralph Tedy Erol/Reuters)