A boy shoots a World War II machine gun armed with blanks at an weapon exhibition during a military show near Kirovsk, about 30 kilometers (19 miles) east of St. Petersburg, Russia, Sunday, January 21, 2018. (Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/AP Photo)

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man holds a chicken before he performs the Kaparot ritual, where white chickens are slaughtered as a symbolic gesture of atonement, ahead of Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement in Bnei Brak, Israel in Bnei Brak October 9, 2016. (Photo by Baz Ratner/Reuters)

A reindeer is seen as people visit ice sculptures illuminated by coloured lights at the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival to celebrate the new year in Harbin on January 4, 2017. (Photo by Nicolas Asfouri/AFP Photo)

David Yeo’s photography places naturally small species alongside animals that have been selectively bred to be tiny and cute. Here: “The most difficult aspect of this shoot was to get each African pygmy dormouse – also known as micro squirrels – on to a separate camera. Once in place, they needed to remain still long enough to get them both in the frame and looking at me. Often solitary, they naturally wanted to move away”. (Photo by David Yeo/Leica Studio Mayfair/The Guardian)

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)

Border Security Force (BSF) “Daredevils” women motorcycle riders perform during a rehearsal for the Republic Day parade on a cold winter morning in New Delhi, January 10, 2018. (Photo by Adnan Abidi/Reuters)

For more than three years, Ukraine has been plagued by a conflict between the eastern secessionist territories and the Kiev government. Demonstrations by pro-Russian parties that oppose the current government first began in 2014 - and now, over 10,000 people have died, many of them civilians. These images portray a generation caught between war and peace. Many of them were born into the civil conflict dominating the country and are disorientated about their place in the world. Here: Youths during a party organised on a decommissioned bridge in Kiev. (Photo by Aude Osnowycz/The Guardian)

Kanwara Kaewjin of Thailand prepares backstage during the final show of the Miss International Queen 2019 transgender beauty pageant in Pattaya, Thailand on March 8, 2019. (Photo by Jorge Silva/Reuters)