A koala named Lisa from Pappinbarra recovers from burns at The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital on November 29, 2019 in Port Macquarie, Australia. Volunteers from the Koala Hospital have been working alongside National Parks and Wildlife Service crews searching for koalas following weeks of devastating bushfires across New South Wales and Queensland. Koalas rescued from fire grounds have been brought back to the hospital for treatment. An estimated million hectares of land has been burned by bushfire across Australia following catastrophic fire conditions in recent weeks, killing an estimated 1000 koalas along with other wildlife. (Photo by Nathan Edwards/Getty Images)

Del Mar firefighters roll up hose after a day fighting wildfires Wednesday, May 14, 2014, in Carlsbad, Calif. More wildfires broke out Wednesday in San Diego County, threatening homes in Carlsbad and forcing the evacuations of military housing and an elementary school at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by AP Photo)

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and these striking images of 2017 are no exception. The photo highlights include incredible snapshots of the natural world as well as some awesome animal and human encounters. The vibrant gallery also shows thrill-seekers pushing themselves to the limit with breathtaking stunts captured in perfect clarity. The pictures have been taken by a host of photographers from around the world. Here: The two lion cubs singing their hearts out at Antelope park in Zimbabwe. (Photo by David Jenkins/Caters News Agency)

Nyaueth by Peter Zelewski – £2,000 third prize winner. This was taken near London’s Oxford Street as part of Zelewski’s series Beautiful Strangers. Zelewski explains: ‘The aim of Beautiful Strangers is to challenge the concept of traditional beauty with a series of spontaneous street portraits of everyday citizens who show character, uniqueness and a special inner quality’. (Photo by Peter Zelewski/Taylor Wessing Portrait Prize 2015)

Members of Brighton Swimming Club brave the early morning temperature to take a dip in the sea east of the pier on January 5, 2022. The club, founded in 1860, is the oldest in England. (Photo by Simon Dack/Alamy Live News)

“The Dragon and The Hopper”. Eyrean earless dragon (Tympanocryptis tetraporophora) standing tall on a very hot rock in western Queensland. For a short time it was joined by a hopper, who jumped off before becoming lunch. (Photo by Harrison Warne/Nature Conservancy Australia 2021 Photo Contest)

Madagascan sunset setting over the 98-foot-tall baobab trees of the Avenue of the Baobabs located in Menabe, Madagascar on August 2020. (Photo by Kim Paffen/MediaDrumImages)

Black softshell turtle or Bostami turtle (Nilssonia nigricans), extremely rare and critically endangered species of tortoise is seen in a pond in Chittagong, Bangladesh on March 1, 2022. For decades, the breeding grounds have shrunk and their habitat has been threatened by habitat pollution. (Photo by Mohammad Shajahan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)