Iraqi army soldiers fire mortars against the Islamic State militants, at Shahrazad village 2 miles (3 kilometers) east of Mosul, Iraq, Monday, November 14, 2016. A suicide bombing in Iraq targeted the Shiite sacred city of Karbala on Monday, killing at least six civilians, the latest attempt by the Islamic State group to distract from the government forces' offensive on the IS-held northern city of Mosul. (Photo by Hussein Malla/AP Photo)

A group of hikers atop Mount St. Helens on July 21, 2016. Mount St. Helens or Louwala-Clough is an active stratovolcano located in Skamania County, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is 96 miles south of Seattle, Washington, and 50 miles northeast of Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Raxit Kagalwala)

Fishermen collect their catch from a net at Dojran Lake, Macedonia, January 4, 2017. Fish from the lake is a traditional food for locals for orthodox Christmas eve, which falls on January 6. The lake faced sustainability issues during the 1990s due to drought and excessive use of its water but has since recovered after measures were taken to replenish and sustain water levels, according to local media. Dojran Lake is one of the three natural lakes in Macedonia, and also the warmest. It is said it is also the richest lake in fish in Europe. (Photo by Ognen Teofilovski/Reuters)

A model presents a creation by Givenchy during men's Fashion Week for the Fall/Winter 2017/2018 collection in Paris on January 20, 2017. (Photo by Patrick Kovarik/AFP Photo)

Fr. Denis Crosby blesses a live lamb during a Pattern Day mass to St. Brigid at the holy well of St. Brigid in Liscannor, Ireland February 1, 2017. (Photo by Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters)

With its huge eyes, comical name and diminutive size, Mark R. Smith’s image of a baby Hawaiian bobtail squid can’t help but raise a smile. A curiously endearing creature, the cephalopod is just 1.5cm across, its mantle cavity bearing more than a passing resemblance to a rather natty shower cap. But it is also a beautiful example of symbiosis – nature’s version of “I’ll scratch your back if you scratch mine” – for on the underside of the squid is a light organ which houses bioluminescent bacteria. The squid offers the bacteria protection and food, while the bacteria emit a glow – a handy trait that the squid uses to offset its silhouette, helping it to evade predators in the depths below. Mark R. Smith’s entry combines several images of a Hawaiian bobtail squid with different focus lengths to create a final picture with greater depth of field than normal. (Photo by Mark R. Smith/Wellcome Images/Macroscopic Solutions)

People walk along the Neva River at sunset in St.Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, December 6, 2016. The temperature in St.Petersburg is –9C ( 15.8 °F). (Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/AP Photo)

Kea are the only true alpine parrots in the world and thrive as cunning opportunists in the freezing conditions of the Southern Alps. Kea are thought to have developed their wide array of food-finding strategies during the last great ice age, where they learned to adapt using their unusual powers of curiosity. (Photo by Tom Walker/BBC Pictures/The Guardian)