Nestled among the cocoa plantations of western Ivory Coast is a gold mine that does not feature on any official maps. It is not run by an industrial mining company, nor does it pay taxes to the central government. The unlicensed mine is a key part of a lucrative business empire headed by the deputy commander of the West African nation's elite Republican Guard, United Nations investigators allege. Here: A gold prospector sits and eats close to a soldier at a gold mine near the village of Gamina, in western Ivory Coast, March 18, 2015. (Photo by Luc Gnago/Reuters)

Urszula Sidoruk, 19, from the paramilitary group SJS Strzelec (Shooters Association), trains her workout at a gym in Siedlce, eastern Poland March 18, 2014. Inspired by the war in Ukraine, growing numbers of Poles are joining volunteer paramilitary groups, where they receive basic army training and prepare to defend their homeland. (Photo by Kacper Pempel/Reuters)

Captured by South African photographer Dillon Marsh, these fantastic photographs depict the many designs employed by sociable weavers to build sturdy nests that are safe from intruders such as cobras and tree snakes. They are also nice cool during the day, and stay warm during cold desert nights. A University of Stellenbosch graduate, Marsh is currently interested in landscape photographer who seeks out anomalies that can be arranged in a photographic series. Assimilation depicts scores of intricate weaver’s nests atop utility poles in Southern Africa. Colonies of sociable weavers have been known to stay attached to one particular nest for up to 100 years, according to The San Diego Zoo.

McMurdo Station is a U.S. Antarctic research centre located on the southern tip of Ross Island, which is in the New Zealand-claimed Ross Dependency on the shore of McMurdo Sound in Antarctica. It is operated by the United States through the United States Antarctic Program, a branch of the National Science Foundation. The station is the largest community in Antarctica, capable of supporting up to 1,258 residents, and serves as the United States Antarctic science facility. All personnel and cargo going to or coming from Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station first pass through McMurdo.

Costumed participants are seen during an Irish tradition of Hunting of the Wren festival held every St. Stephen's Day in Dingle, Ireland, December 26, 2016. Wren Day, also known as Wren's Day, Day of the Wren, or Hunt the Wren Day is celebrated on 26 December, St. Stephen's Day. The tradition consists of “hunting” a fake wren and putting it on top a decorated pole. (Photo by Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters)

The sun rises behind the landmark Anchor on the quay in Appledore, North Devon, United Kingdom on June 7, 2022. The anchor has been decorated with hundreds of colourful crocheted flowers by the residents of the North Devon coastal village. (Photo by Terry Mathews/Alamy Live News)

A child is seen during celebrations of Reindeer Breeder Day, the main holiday of indigenous peoples of the Russian Extreme North, in the village of Nosok on Taymyr Peninsula in north-central Siberia, Krasnoyarsk Territory, Russia on April 17, 2021. (Photo by Alexander Ryumin/TASS)

North Korean soldiers march during a military parade marking the 105th birth anniversary of the country's founding father Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang, North Korea, April 15, 2017. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)