An artist performs with a lion during the presentation of the new international show “Extreme arena” at the Ukrainian National Circus in Kiev, Ukraine, 15 September 2016. The show will be staged from 15 September to 11 December 2016. (Photo by Roman Pilipey/EPA)

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)

A woman dressed as the Wizard of Oz’s Dorothy walks her dog dressed as the Cowardly Lion as they attend the annual Congressional Dog Costume Parade on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on October 27, 2021. (Photo by Jim Watson/AFP Photo)

Suadar Oyunbold, age 5 runs from a Lion Dancer in Dublin City Farm at St Anne’s Park on January 9, 2023 to mark the launch of the programme for Dublin Lunar New Year which runs from 21-29 January. (Photo by Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times)

These heart-warming photograph show an incredible bond between a wild lioness and the men fighting to save her species. The picture show Sirga – a 110lb lioness – and her adopted pride Valentin Gruener (not pictured) and Mikkel Legarth. Incredibly she treats the two men just like she would other lions and with their help she can now hunt for prey on her own. As a cub she was driven out from a pride and rescued by German and Danish duo Valentin and Mikkel who could not stand by and watch her die. She is now a beacon for hoped success of the Modisa Wildlife Project, founded in Botswana, Africa, by Valentin and Mikkel with the hope of saving the lion population. (Photo by Caters News)

In this Tuesday, June 18, 2013 photo, Zita, a liger – half-lioness, half-tiger – carries her one month-old liliger cub in the Novosibirsk Zoo. The cub's father is a lion, Sam. (Photo by Ilnar Salakhiev/AP Photo)

An unidentified guest wears a hat with a lion at the Grand Palais which is transformed into a Chanel airport before German designer Karl Lagerfeld's Spring/Summer 2016 women's ready-to-wear collection for French fashion house Chanel during Fashion Week in Paris, France, October 6, 2015. (Photo by Benoit Tessier/Reuters)

An excavator removes a dead bear at the zoo in Tbilisi, Georgia, June 17, 2015. Tigers, lions, bears and wolves were among more than 30 animals that escaped from a Georgian zoo and onto the streets of the capital Tbilisi on Sunday during floods that killed at least 12 people. REUTERS/David Mdzinarishvili