Iraqi firefighters try to stop the fire of burning oil wells in Kirkuk, northern Iraq, 02 June 2016. Two Khabbaz oil field wells in Kirkuk Province, northern Iraq, exploded by suspected insurgents, a security official said. (Photo by EPA/Stringer)

A dramatic rise in owning exotic pets in China is fuelling global demand for threatened species. The growing trade in alligators, snakes, monkeys, crocodiles and spiders is directly linked to species loss in some of the world’s most threatened ecosystems. Here: A fennec fox (Vulpes zerda) is groomed in a pet store in central Beijing. Native to the Sahara in North Africa, the species became a popular pet after being depicted as a character in Disney’s 2016 animated movie Zootopia. Individuals can cost between $2,000–$3,000. (Photo by Sean Gallagher/The Guardian)

Romanian military doctors and medical students sit on a bus behind steamy windows before the National Day parade in Bucharest, Romania, Thursday, December 1, 2016. Military planes and helicopters flew over the Romanian capital Thursday as thousands turned out to celebrate the national day, marking the date when the country reunified with Transylvania in 1918. (Photo by Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo)

Model mum Valeria Garcia walks Marta Jakubowski's SS19 show wearing world first silent wearable breast pump: Elvie Pump at BFC Show Space on September 14, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty Images for Elvie)

Danish model Helena Christensen looked stunning as she posed in lacy, black negligee in garden of her New York home on December 2, 2022. (Photo by Coco De Mer)

A woman carrying a basket of papayas while walking through a vegetable market in Bangkok, Thailand November 11, 2011. (Photo by Kerek Wongsa/Reuters)

Guests arrive for the opening ceremony of the 23rd Life Ball in Vienna May 16, 2015. Life Ball is Europe's largest annual AIDS charity event and takes place in Vienna's city hall. The Life Ball is a charity gala to raise money for people living with HIV and AIDS. (Photo by Leonhard Foeger/Reuters)

Lilly Caron, 8, of Bridgeton, Maine, Jason Homchick, of San Diego, and Lilly's father Jason Caron, (obscured), ride the Sky Swing at Seacoast Adventure, Thursday, July 14, 2016, in Wyndham, Maine. The 100-foot-tall swing gives riders the combined thrills of sky diving and hang gliding. (Photo by Robert F. Bukaty/AP Photo)