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)

Soldiers are reflected in a puddle during a military parade during the celebrations for Romania's National Day in Bucharest December 1, 2014. (Photo by Radu Sigheti/Reuters)

Gloria Lincoln-Thompson carries her 9mm Smith & Wesson pistol in her waistband during a rally in support of the Michigan Open Carry gun law in Romulus, Michigan, in this April 27, 2014 file photo. (Photo by Rebecca Cook/Reuters)

Canadian fashion model Winnie Harlow poses on the red carpet during the MTV Europe Music Awards, in Budapest, Hungary, November 14, 2021. (Photo by Marton Monus/Reuters)

A woman takes a selfie with the a cafe-staff dressed in a halloween costume at a cafe in Bangkok on October 23, 2024. (Photo by Manan Vatsyayana/AFP Photo)

A boy sits on the back of a crocodile on May 19, 2018 at a pond in Bazoule in Burkina Faso, a village which happily shares its local pond with “sacred” crocodiles. Crocodiles may be one of the deadliest hunters in the animal kingdom, but in a small village in Burkina Faso it is not unusual to see someone sitting atop one of the fearsome reptiles. According to local legend, the startling relationship with the predators dates back to at least the 15 th century. The village was in the grip of an agonising drought until the crocodiles led women to a hidden pond where the population could slake their thirst. (Photo by Olympia de Maismont/AFP Photo)

A man pours mud water on the head of his girl friend during the Boryeong Mud Festival at Daecheon Beach in Boryeong, South Korea, Friday, July 18, 2014. The annual mud festival features mud wrestling and mud sliding. (Photo by Ahn Young-joon/AP Photo)

An actress dressed as Wonder Woman walks between visitors during the season inauguration of the Madrid Warner amusement park in San Martin de Valdeiglesias, near Madrid, Spain, March 18, 2016. (Photo by Andrea Comas/Reuters)