Adrian Davies / Collared Earthstar Fungus (Geastrum triplex) Surrey, England, UK, November.

Pete Oxford / Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake (Crotalus adamanteus), Little St. Simon's Island, Georgia

Juan Carlos Munoz / Magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus) flapping its wings, with another lying down. Puerto Deseado, Patagonia, Argentina, Nov 2008

Bernard Castelein / Cinereous / European Black Vulture (Aegypius monachus) in dispute with an Eurasian Griffon Vulture (Gyps fulvus), alongside a Himalayan Griffon (Gyps himalayensis) and Long-billed Vulture (Gyps indicu...

Thomas Marent / Dyeing Poison Frog (Dendrobates tinctorius), Kaw, French Guiana

Petra Wegner / Two Miniature Schnauzers, black-silver and pepper-and-salt coated, sitting in autumn foliage

Andrew Parkinson / Pair of Great Crested Grebes (Podiceps cristatus) during their elaborate courtship dance. March. Derbyshire, UK, March (non-ex)

Andrew Parkinson / Pair of Mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos) on a lake in dawn, Derbyshire, UK. April (non-ex)

Bence Mate / Keel-billed Toucan (Ramphastos sulfuratus) in aggressive encounter with a Montezuma Oropendola (Psarocolius montezuma), Laguna del Lagarto, Santa Rita, Costa Rica

Alex Mustard / Female Grey seal (Halichoerus grypus) startled. Lundy Island, Devon, England, UK.

Kim Taylor / Three-eyed Iguanid Lizard (Chalarodon madargascariensis) portrait standing.

Steve Knell / Harlequin duck (Histrionicus histrionicus) male standing in rapids, Iceland, May

Alex Hyde / Head and forelegs of tropical Katydid {Tettigoniidae} photographed on white background. Masoala Peninsula National Park, north east Madagascar.

Sebastian Kennerknecht / San Francisco Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia) on pond vegetation, Pescadero, California

Piotr Naskrecki / Scorpions mother carrying young where they protected by her stinger until capable of hunting on their own, Brownsberg Reserve, Surinam. Sequence 1 of 2

Piotr Naskrecki / Scorpion young on the back of their mother, their soft cuticle is not yet reflecting ultraviolet light, Brownsberg Nature Park, Surinam

Thomas Marent / Reticulated Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates reticulatus), Allpahuayo Mishana National Reserve, Peru

Thomas Marent / Harlequin Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates histrionicus) on bromeliad, Cauca, Colombia

Thomas Marent / Golden Poison Dart Frog (Phyllobates terribilis) pair mating, Cauca, Colombia

Thomas Marent / Eyelash Viper (Bothriechis schlegelii) with yellow coloration, coiled on branch, Cahuita National Park, Costa Rica

ZSSD / Blue Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates azureus) very tiny poisonous frog, Indian tribes use poison for arrows, native to South America, San Diego Zoo, California

Scott Leslie / Lion's Mane (Cyanea capillata) jellyfish, Atlantic Ocean, Nova Scotia, Canada

Albert Lleal / SEM close-up of a millipede at 70x magnification showing 2 pair of legs per body section, the attribute distinguishing this group from centipedes which have but a single pair of legs per section

Albert Lleal / SEM close-up of a millipede at 70x magnification showing 2 pair of legs per body section, the attribute distinguishing this group from centipedes which have but a single pair of legs per section

Tom Vezo / Gila Monster (Heloderma suspectum), Sonoran Desert, Arizona

Richard Du Toit / Thick-tailed Scorpion (Buthidae) walking on sand dune and casting a shadow, Namib-Naukluft National Park, Namibia

Mark Moffett / Granular Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates granuliferus) portrait on bird's nest fungus, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Mark Moffett / Golden Poison Dart Frog (Phyllobates terribilis) the most poisonous of the dart frogs, male carrying tadpoles on his back, Colombia

Mark Moffett / Golden Poison Dart Frog (Phyllobates terribilis) the most poisonous of the dart frogs, western Colombia

Mark Moffett / Golden Poison Dart Frog (Phyllobates terribilis) the most poisonous of the dart frogs, western Colombia

Michael & Patricia Fogden / Blue Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates azureus) very tiny frog used by Indian tribes to poison tips of arrows, native to South America

Gerry Ellis / Blue Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates azureus) secretes a fluid from its skin which is used by indigenous Indians to poison the tips of arrows, native to South America

ZSSD / Gila Monster (Heloderma suspectum) sensing with tongue, venomous species native to southwest United States and northern Mexico

Pete Oxford / Eyelash Viper (Bothriechis schlegelii) venomous, arboreal, Esmeraldas, Ecuador

ZSSD / Colorado Desert Sidewinder (Crotalus cerastes laterorepens) on sand, venomous species native to deserts of California and Mexico

Michael & Patricia Fogden / Peringuey's Sidewinding Adder (Bitis peringueyi) sidewinding across sand dune, Namib Desert, Namibia

Michael & Patricia Fogden / Peringuey's Sidewinding Adder (Bitis peringueyi) on sand dune, Namib Desert, Namibia

Mark Moffett / Green and Black Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates auratus) meets a Tarantula, Taboga Island, Panama Tarantulas eat frogs but avoid Poison Dart Frogs, yet on Taboga, such encounters are common and Tarantul...

Gerry Ellis / Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria) highly poisonous mushrooms growing on forest floor, North America

Michael & Patricia Fogden / Clark's Coral Snake (Micrurus clarki) venomous snake with warning coloration, rainforest, Costa Rica

Claus Meyer / Two-striped Forest Pit Viper (Bothrops bilineatus) coiled around plant, front view, Atlantic Forest ecosystem, Brazil

Michael & Patricia Fogden / Eyelash Viper (Bothriechis schlegelii) gold morph camouflaged among palm fruits, rainforest, Costa Rica

Michael & Patricia Fogden / Eyelash Viper (Bothriechis schlegelii) showing loreal pits for detecting heat, rainforest, Costa Rica

Michael & Patricia Fogden / Eyelash Viper (Bothriechis schlegelii) gold morph lying in wait on Heliconia (Heliconia imbricata) to strike at Rufous-tailed Hummingbird (Amazilia tzacatl) rainforest, Costa Rica

Michael & Patricia Fogden / Bushmaster (Lachesis muta) baby hatching from egg, lowland rainforest on Atlantic slope of Costa Rica

Michael & Patricia Fogden / Black-tailed Rattlesnake (Crotalus molossus) portrait, Chiricahua Mountains, Arizona

Claus Meyer / Scorpion tail ends in a stinger that protects the young carried on back, Caatinga ecosystem, Brazil

Claus Meyer / Aquatic Coral Snake (Micrurus surinamensis) showing warning color pattern, Amazon ecosystem, Brazil

Claus Meyer / Two-striped Forest Pit Viper (Bothrops bilineatus) hanging on a Heliconia (Heliconia sp) flower, Atlantic Forest, Brazil

Chris Newbert / Cowfish (Lactoria diaphanus) juvenile pelagic stage, night, Kona, Hawaii

Chris Newbert / Common Lionfish (Pterois volitans), 70 feet deep, Solomon Islands

Chris Newbert / Soft Coral (Dendronephthya sp) schooling Pygmy Sweeper (Parapriacanthus ransonneti) and Lionfish (Pterois volitans)

Ingo Arndt / Cup Moth (Limacodidae) two caterpillars on leaf

Chris Newbert / Common Lionfish (Pterois volitans) swimming over coral reef, Red Sea

Chris Newbert / Common Lionfish (Pterois volitans) swimming over reef, 20 feet deep, Red Sea

Jim Brandenburg / Western Rattlesnake (Crotalus viridis) in defensive posture, South Dakota

Mark Moffett / Strawberry Poison Dart Frog (Oophaga pumilio), Bastimentos Island, Panama

Mark Moffett / Strawberry Poison Dart Frog (Oophaga pumilio) group showing color variation from different islands, Bocas del Toro, Panama

Mitsuaki Iwago / Platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) underwater portrait, Australia

Fred Bavendam / Banded Sea Krait (Laticauda colubrina) hunting for small fish on the reef, Manado, North Sulawesi, Indonesia

Norbert Wu / Cone Snail (Conus dalli), Sea of Cortez, Baja California, Mexico

Norbert Wu / Giant Pelagic Jellyfish (Pelagia panopyra) many animals are associated with this poisonous floating object, Monterey, California

Mark Moffett / Slug Caterpillar (Setora fletcheri) shows warning coloration and spines loaded with toxins that erect when the animal is disturbed, Tam Dao National Park, Vietnam

Mitsuaki Iwago / Platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) on shoreline, Kangaroo Island, Australia

Mark Moffett / Red-headed Poison Frog (Dendrobates fantasticus) portrait, Amazonia, Ecuador

Fred Bavendam / Common Lionfish (Pterois volitans) lurking among Feather Star Crinoids clinging to the lip of a large Barrel Sponge, Bali, Indonesia

Larry Minden / Red Rattlesnake (Crotalus ruber) coiled on ground, Baja California, Mexico

Larry Minden / Red Rattlesnake (Crotalus ruber) with tongue extended, Baja California, Mexico

Mark Moffett / Red-headed Poison Frog (Dendrobates fantasticus), Amazonia, Ecuador

Mark Moffett / Yellow-banded Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates leucomelas) portrait, Venezuela

Mark Moffett / Black-legged Poison Dart Frog (Phyllobates bicolor) portrait, Colombia

Mark Moffett / Rio Madeira Poison Frog (Dendrobates quinquevittatus) portrait, Peruvian lowlands

Mark Moffett / Phantasmal Poison Dart Frog (Epipedobates tricolor) near Cuenca, Ecuador this frog exudes epibatidine, a chemical with analgesic qualities two hundred times as powerful as morphine

Mark Moffett / Strawberry Poison Dart Frog (Oophaga pumilio) mother deposits tadpoles, one by one, to pools of water in canopy bromeliad, scattering them among the trees, Bastimentos Island, Bocas del Toro, Panama

Jim Brandenburg / Western Rattlesnake (Crotalus viridis) in defensive posture, South Dakota

Mark Moffett / Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates sp) portrait, Isla Cristobal, Panama

Mark Moffett / Strawberry Poison Dart Frog (Oophaga pumilio) portrait, Colon Island, Panama

Mark Moffett / Strawberry Poison Dart Frog (Oophaga pumilio) dominant male resting on snail, Bastimentos Islands, Bocas del Toro, Panama

Fred Bavendam / Guineafowl Pufferfish (Arothron meleagris) in its golden color phase puffed up off of Tower Island, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador

Piotr Naskrecki / Dyeing Poison Frog (Dendrobates tinctorius), Suriname

Piotr Naskrecki / Brilliant-thighed Poison Frog (Epipedobates femoralis), Suriname

Piotr Naskrecki / Three-striped Poison Dart Frog (Ameerega trivittata), Suriname

Albert Lleal / Scorpion (Euscorpius flavicaudis) stinger, native to northwest Africa and southern Europe

Norbert Wu / Bastard Dory (Enoplosus armatus), South Australia, Australia

Ingo Arndt / Saddleback Moth (Sibine horrida) caterpillars with poisonous spines, Costa Rica

Ingo Arndt / Saddleback Moth (Sibine horrida) caterpillar with poisonous spines, Costa Rica

Ingo Arndt / Saddleback Moth (Sibine horrida) caterpillars with poisonous spines, Costa Rica

Tom Vezo / Black-tailed Rattlesnake (Crotalus molossus), Arizona

Pete Oxford / Ecuador Poison Frog (Epipedobates bilinguis) with tadpoles on back, Yasuni National Park, Amazon Rainforest, Ecuador

Pete Oxford / Ecuador Poison Frog (Epipedobates bilinguis), Yasuni National Park, Amazon Rainforest, Ecuador

Martin Willis / Tiger Snake (Notechis scutatus), Traralgon, Victoria, Australia

Martin Willis / Tiger Snake (Notechis scutatus), Traralgon, Victoria, Australia

Martin Willis / Black Tiger Snake (Notechis ater), Tasmania, Australia

Martin Willis / Tiger Snake (Notechis scutatus) biting shoe after being stepped on, Traralgon, Victoria, Australia

Martin Willis / Northern Death Adder (Acanthophis praelongus) camouflaged in leaf litter, Northern Australia, Australia

Martin Willis / Northern Death Adder (Acanthophis praelongus) camouflaged in leaf litter, Northern Australia, Australia

Thomas Marent / Strawberry Poison Dart Frog (Oophaga pumilio) on mushroom, Tortuguero National Park, Costa Rica