“Exactly one year before the long awaited Sochi Olympics, Vladimir Putin went to Sochi personally to see how the construction is going. After receiving a report saying the ski jumps that were supposed to be ready in 2011, are not completed still, while their price has sky-rocketed from 1.2 billion to 8 billion roubles, he commented, “Good for you. Good job”, and then fired the vice president of the Olympic committee. Russian artist Vasily Slonov painted his view of the upcoming games, giving a new interpretation to the adored Russian mascot Cheburashka, and combining officially endorsed stereotypes of Russia with grimmer and less accepted ones”. – Ruskie.info. (Photo by Vasily Slonov)

A rare grasshopper shines bright against its leafy background in North Holland, Netherlands in the first decade of October 2024. The insects are usually brown or green but turn pink due to a genetic mutation. (Photo by Roeselien Raimond/Media Drum Images)

Clinging on with sticky toes, a green tree frog sits bravely on its unlikely friend – a large tree python. Curled around the branches of a small coconut tree, the snake appears relatively undisturbed by the bold passenger that has clambered onto its skin. Grown in captivity together, the pair display no signs of aggression or fear, comfortable with their encounters high up in the leafy branches. Photo enthusiast Fahmi Bhs watched in surprise as the frog slowly climbed along the scales of the metre long snake in a zoo in Jakarta, Indonesia. (Photo by Fahmi Bhs/Solent News/SIPA Press)

Neil Zeller's snaps were taken across Canada, where he photographs the northern lights dancing across a dark night sky. In one stunning shot, Zeller, 42, even manages to capture a flash of lightning beneath a storm cell while an aurora gives off a magnificent green glow. The photographer, from Calgary, Alberta, describes himself as a night person, and became interested in night photography about 10 years ago. (Photo by Neil Zeller/Caters News)

Participants of the so called “Victorian Picnic” walk in fancy costumes during the Wave Gothic Festival (WGT) in Leipzig, Germany, Friday, June 2, 2017. Approximately 20,000 goths and other dark subculture fans such as cybergoths, metalheads, steampunks, neo- Victorians, dark romantics, dark electro, industrial, medieval and fetish fans are expected to attend the world' s largest gothic and “dark” culture festival until June 5, 2017. (Photo by Tobias Schwarz/AFP Photo)

A jogger runs along Bregagh Road at Dark Hedges, Armoy, Northern Ireland, Wednesday, February 10, 2016. Road markings have been painted by mistake on the world famous road that features the Dark Hedges tree lined road which was made famous by the Game of Thrones and is now a massive tourist attraction. (Photo by Peter Morrison/AP Photo)

A kingfisher dives into the leafy water of the River Alde near Rendham, Suffolk in the second decade of November 2022 and catches two fish. Kingfishers must be able to see the fish they want to catch before making their dive, so for this bird to be successful when leaves covered the surface of the water shows its true skill for survival. (Photo by Ivor Ottley/Animal News Agency)

Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station experiences months of darkness. The sun dips below the horizon on March 21, after which follows several weeks of twilight before complete darkness results. Photo taken on June 25, 2009. (National Science Foundation/Jeremy Johnson)