Comandos de Salvamento rescuers Maria Martinez (L) and Ana Chichilla attend to a wounded homeless man in San Salvador, El Salvador July 16, 2016. The man was attacked with a machete by suspected gang members. In 2015, El Salvador registered a record 103 homicides per 100,000 habitants, making it one of the most dangerous countries in the world outside a war zone. But for many young people who have few chances to distance themselves from rivalries between so-called maras in their schools and neighbourhoods, a civil-society organisation called the Comandos de Salvamento, or Rescue Corps, has been a refuge. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)

Nepalese women farmers spray mud water at each other while planting rice in a paddy field during the National Paddy Day in the village of Jitpur in Kathmandu, Nepal, 30 June 2015. On this day, known as Asar Pandra, farmers begin the annual rice planting season and mark the day with various festivities such as preparing rice meals with muddy water, spreads mud among farmers. The Mud being a symbol for a prosperous season. The agricultural sector contributes about 60 per cent to Nepal's gross domestic product. (Photo by Narendra Shrestha/EPA)

A picture made with a tilt-shift lens shows “Dwarf Empire” cast member 19-year-old Han Zhen Yan posing in her fairy costume backstage outside one of the fairy tale-like houses at the Dwarf Empire theme park outside Kunming, China's Yunnan province, 04 April 2013. The Dwarf Empire theme park opened in mid-2009, employing a number of dwarves to create the show. Depending on what type of job they do at the park, employees earn between 800-2,000 CNY (100-250 Euros) per month, most of which goes towards their savings as lodging is provided, and their living quarters are equipped with kitchens where they prepare their own meals. (Photo by Diego Azubel/EPA)

People walk along the Dune du Pilat (Dune of Pilat), the tallest sand dune in Europe, in La Teste de Buch, near Bordeaux, France, June 15, 2016. The dune has a volume of about 60,000,000 m³, measuring around 500 m wide from east to west and 2.7 km in length from north to south. Its height is currently 110 meters above sea level. (Photo by Sergio Perez/Reuters)

The Atlantic Puffin is definitely a curious-looking bird. The special coloring that this bird develops for the breeding season in the spring is very reminiscent of tropical birds. The bright colors of the beak and the markings around the eyes serve no particular advantage and have evolved as a result of sexual selection. However, Puffins don’t look that pretty all year round. They shed all these festive colors in partial moult after the breeding season is over. They lose the ornaments around their eyes, their face becomes darker, and their beak becomes very different. The natural habitat of these birds is the cold waters of the North Atlantic Ocean.

Throughout the course of the long war in Afghanistan, Coalition troops have relied on thousands of military working dogs to help keep them safe, and make their jobs easier. The dogs are trained to detect explosives, to find illegal drugs, to search for missing comrades, or target enemy combatants. Not only are they active on the front lines, but behind the lines they serve as therapy dogs, service dogs, and loyal companions. They also share the same risks as the ground troops, suffering injuries and sometimes death on the battlefields. Gathered here are images of these dogs and their handlers in Afghanistan and back home, from over the past several years, part of the ongoing series here on Afghanistan.

A woman in a maid costume serves customers the Maid Coffee Shop in the Akihabara District October 23, 2005 in Tokyo, Japan. The Akihabara District is known as the world's biggest electrical appliance and equipment town, but recently this area has also became famous for having many shops delivering products and healing services by employees in the costume of maids and animation characters. Some popular shops include coffee, hair salon and massage shops where females deliver services dressed as maids. (Photo by Koichi Kamoshida/Getty Images)

A girl is seen in a bakery in the old walled town of Harar in eastern Ethiopia, May 19, 2015. Daily life of people in Ethiopia, where elections are held this weekend, is portrayed in the east African nation's churches and mosques, coffee shops and markets, both in the capital Addis Ababa and the walled town of Harar in the east. Ethiopia, home to nearly 100 million people, holds the first poll on Sunday since long-serving leader Meles Zenawi died in 2012. (Photo by Siegfried Modola/Reuters)