Is it a leaf? Is it tree bark? No, it’s the Satanic leaf-tailed gecko. Cleverly disguised as a rotting leaf, Madagascar’s camouflage king has red eyes, pointy horns and a taste for night hunting: it’s nature’s most devilish deceiver. The twisted body and veiny skin echo the detail of a dry leaf, which ensures the gecko blends in with its forest home. The mottled tail appears to have sections missing, as though it has withered over time. This mini-monster epitomises survival of the fittest, having adapted gradually to become today’s extraordinary leaf impersonator. (Photo by Thomas Marent/ARDEA)

Clash of the storms, New Mexico, US by Camelia Czuchnicki. “A clash between two storm cells in New Mexico, US, each with its own rotating updraft. The curved striations of the oldest noticeable against the new bubbling convection of the newer. It was a fantastic sight to watch and it’s the rarity of such scenes that keep drawing me back to the US Plains each year”. (Photo by Camelia Czuchnicki/Weather Photographer of the Year 2016)

Belgian yoga teacher Dorien Dierckx, 29 from Brussels enjoys a beer while relaxing in a jacuzzi full of hot water and a mixture of ingredients used to make beer, and where customers can serve their own beer from the tap at the Good Beer Spa in Brussels, Belgium on May 12, 2021. (Photo by Yves Herman/Reuters)

American actress and singer Vanessa Hudgens poses on the red carpet during the Oscars arrivals at the 94th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S., March 27, 2022. (Photo by Mike Blake/Reuters)

Samuel (9), Leah (10) and Matthew Flynn (7), from Baldoyle, Dublin, enjoying the fine weather on Burrow Beach in Sutton, Ireland on June 2, 2023. (Photo by Tom Honan for The Irish Times)

English singer and songwriter Dua Lipa “woke up in Vegas” early April 2022 in red thigh-high tights. (Photo by dualipa/Instagram)

Women take a selfie with a giant dragon lantern decorated near the frozen Houhai Lake in Beijing, Thursday, February 8, 2024. (Photo by Andy Wong/AP Photo)

Buddhist nuns watch a parade during a Novitiation Ceremony at the Hlegu Township in Yangon on March 15, 2025. (Photo by Sai Aung Main/AFP Photo)