Young female Ibex on the fork of Disteis (2,200 m), near the top of the Jof di Montasio (Friuli, Italy). (Photo by Stefano Zocca)

Beautiful, strange and occasionally alarming pictures from the shortlist for this year’s Wellcome image awards – which celebrate the very best in science photography and imaging – from an x-ray of a bat to a micrograph of a kidney stone. The exhibition opens on 12 March at three science centres and the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester. Photo: Scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of an Arabidopsis thaliana flower, also commonly known as thale cress. Some of the anthers are open, revealing pollen grains ready for dispersal. Arabidopsis was the first plant to have its entire genome sequenced and is widely used as a model organism in molecular and plant biology. Horizontal width of image is 1200 microns. Magnification 100x. (Photo by Stefan Eberhard/Wellcome Images)

Two Herens cows lock horns during the qualification round of the annual “Battle of the Queens” cow fight finals in Aproz, in the western Alpine canton of Valais May 5, 2013. Each year when taken to the alpine pastures, the cows test their strength and fight for the herd's leadership. The competition continues until a new queen has forced all the other cows to retreat. (Photo by Valentin Flauraud/Reuters)

Two sculputures at the waterfront in Marseille – Ever feel like youve forgotten something? No its not a mind trick – these are the amazing photos of sculptures done by a French artist. The sculptures are the work of Bruno Catalano and might look like theyre missing vital organs but the invisible bodies represent a world citizen according to their creator. (Photo by Caters News Agency)

An alpaca chewing a leaf is pictured on November 18, 2014 in the zoo of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. (Photo by Frank Rumpenhorst/AFP Photo/DPA)

In this September 10, 1977, file photo, from left, Hua Guofeng, Chinese Communist Party (CCP) chairman and Mao Zedong's immediate successor; Ye Jianying, CCP vice chairman and future ceremonial head of state; Deng Xiaoping, no formal titles at the time but soon to emerge as paramount leader during the reform era; Li Xiannian, CCP vice chairman and future president; Wang Dongxing, head of the leadership bodyguard unit who helped topple the Gang of Four, view the body of later Chinese leader Mao Zedong in Beijing. (Photo via AP Photo)

Adventurer Sam Cossman movies towards the huge lava lake wearing a custom built industrial proximity heat suit on December 20, 2014 in Ambrym, Vanuatu. (Photo by Conor Toumarkine/Barcroft Media)

An African giant pouched rat sniffs for traces of landmine explosives at APOPO's training facility in Morogoro on June 17, 2016. APOPO trains the rats to detect both tuberculosis and landmines at its facility. Every year landmines kill or maim thousands of people worldwide. The trained rats sniff for explosive and so are able to detect the presence of landmines far faster than conventional methods which involve metal detection. (Photo by Carl De Souza/AFP Photo)