MYN / Paul Harcourt Davies / Horsefly (Tabanus bovinus) close up of male feeding on fennel flower nectar (the females are blood suckers) Lazio, Italy, July. meetyourneighbours.net project

Laurent Geslin / African lion (Panthera leo) two cubs licking blood off their faces after feeding on Wildebeest carcass, Masai Mara reserve, Kenya

Daniel Heuclin / Mosquito (Anopheles gambiae) feeding on human in controlled conditions. The body is becoming engorged with blood. Malaria vector. Africa, June. Engorging sequence 2 of 3. Model released

Anup Shah / African lion (Panthera leo) feeding on recent kill with vultures gathering in the background - wide angle perspective. Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. October 2009.

Anup Shah / Flock of White-backed vultures (Gyps africanus) feeding on a carcass, wide angle perspective. Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. September

Alex Hyde / Cleg fly / Horsefly (Haematopota pluvialis) sucking blood from human.

Stephen Dalton / Mosquito (Culicidae) female feeding on human blood, controlled conditions

Nick Upton / Cleg fly / Horsefly (Haematopa pluvialis) sucking blood from photographer's arm, Wiltshire pastureland, UK, June.

Stephen Dalton / Horsefly (Tabanus sudeticus) feeding on human skin, UK

Michael Pitts / Southern giant petrel (Macronectes giganteus) head covered in blood feeding on carcass of an Elephant seal pup, with a penguin colony in the distance, St Andrews Bay, South Georgia

Wild Wonders of Europe / Elander / Griffon vultures (Gyps fulvus) squabbling, heads covered in blood from feeding, Andorra, June 2009

Warwick Sloss / African lion {Panthera leo} male covered in mud and blood after feeding on a hippo kill, Katavi NP, Tanzania.

Wild Wonders of Europe / Widstrand / Griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus) head covered in blood from feeding, with the wing of another individual, Montejo de la Vega, Segovia, Castilla y Leon, Spain, March 2009

Wild Wonders of Europe / Widstrand / Griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus) portrait, head covered in blood from feeding, Montejo de la Vega, Segovia, Castilla y Leon, Spain, March 2009

Andy Rouse / Polar bear (Ursus maritimus) with seal kill, Svalbard, Norway, September 2009

Marc Slootmaekers / A bloody lion (Panthera leo) lying on its back after feeding on a buffalo, Masai Mara, Kenya. Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009: Animal Portraits category: Runner-up

Anup Shah / White backed vulture {Gyps africanus} head and neck covered in blood from feeding, Masai Mara GR, Kenya

Kim Taylor / Mosquito (Aedes punctor) female resting after sucking blood from human arm. Sequence 4/4

Kim Taylor / Mosquito (Aedes punctor) female sucking blood from human arm. Sequence 3/4

Kim Taylor / Mosquito (Aedes punctor) female sucking blood from human arm. Sequence 1/4

Kim Taylor / Tsetse fly {Glossina morsitans} feeding on human arm, from Africa

Martin Dohrn / Mosquito gorged with human blood {Culex pipiens} UK

Warwick Sloss / Mosquito {Anopheles gambiae} female sucking blood from human

Mitsuaki Iwago / African Lion (Panthera leo) females feeding on Burchell's Zebra (Equus burchellii), Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

JIM CLARE / Common vampire bat feeding on young sealion blood, Paracas NP Peru

Tony Heald / Bloody faced African lioness licking lips after feeding, Chobe NP, Botswana

Yuri Shibnev / Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis), blood on face from feeding. Ussuriland, South Primorsky Region, Russia

Dietmar Nill / Common vampire bat {Desmodus rotundus} feeds off blood from bird's foot. Central America

JIM CLARE / Vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) feeding on cow blood. Trinidad, Caribbean

JIM CLARE / Vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) feeding on cow blood. Trinidad, Caribbean

XI ZHINONG / Grey wolf (Canis lupus) with blood on its face from feeding on a carcass, Kekexili, Qinghai, China, December

XI ZHINONG / Grey wolf, (Canis lupus) eating snow, with blood on its face from feeding, Kekexili, Qinghai, China, December

XI ZHINONG / Grey wolf (Canis lupus) at a Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsoni) carcass, Qinghai, China, December

Konrad Wothe / Leech on skin in rainforest, West Papua, Indonesia

Nick Upton / Stable fly (Stomoxys calcitrans) piercing skin to suck blood from photographer's ankle, Samos, Greece, August.

Piotr Naskrecki / Dracula Ant (Amblyopone sp) worker puncturing the skin of a larva to sip its trickling blood, this behavior does not seem to harm the larva, but feeds the adults, Muller Range, Papua New Guinea

MYN / Paul Harcourt Davies / Horsefly (Tabanus bovinus) male feeding on Fennel flower nectar (the females are blood suckers) Lazio, Italy, July. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Paul Harcourt Davies / Horsefly (Tabanus bovinus) male feeding on flower nectar (the females are blood suckers) Lazio, Italy, July. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Paul Harcourt Davies / Horsefly (Tabanus bovinus) male feeding on flower nectar (the females are blood suckers) Lazio, Italy, July. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Paul Harcourt Davies / Horsefly (Tabanus bovinus) male feeding on fennel flower nectar (the females are blood suckers) Lazio, Italy, July. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Paul Harcourt Davies / Horsefly (Tabanus bovinus) male feeding on fennel flower nectar (the females are blood suckers) Lazio, Italy, July. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Paul Harcourt Davies / Horsefly (Tabanus bovinus) male feeding on flower nectar (the females are blood suckers) Lazio, Italy, July. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Paul Harcourt Davies / Horsefly (Tabanus bovinus) male feeding on flower nectar (the females are blood suckers) Lazio, Italy, July. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Paul Harcourt Davies / Horsefly (Tabanus bovinus) male feeding on fennel flower nectar (the females are blood suckers) Lazio, Italy, July. meetyourneighbours.net project

MYN / Paul Harcourt Davies / Horsefly (Tabanus bovinus) male feeding on fennel flower nectar (the females are blood suckers) Lazio, Italy, July. meetyourneighbours.net project

Ole Jorgen Liodden / Southern Giant Petrel (Macronectes giganteus) covered in blood from feeding on carcass. South Georgia Islands, Southern Ocean, November.

Laurent Geslin / African lion (Panthera leo) two cubs with blood on face after feeding on Wildebeest carcasee, Masai Mara reserve, Kenya

Laurent Geslin / African lion (Panthera leo) cub and juvenile male interacting after feeding on carcass, Masai Mara reserve, Kenya

Laurent Geslin / Spotted hyaena (Crocuta crocuta) feedign on Wildebeest carcass, Masai Mara reserve, Kenya, July

Piotr Naskrecki / Dracula Ant (Amblyopone sp) worker puncturing the skin of a larva to sip its trickling blood, this behavior does not seem to harm the larva, but feeds the adults, Papua New Guinea

Piotr Naskrecki / Sand Fly (Lutzomyia sp) feeding on human blood, these flies are vectors of many serious tropical diseases, Guyana. Sequence 3 of 3

Piotr Naskrecki / Sand Fly (Lutzomyia sp) feeding on human blood, these flies are vectors of many serious tropical diseases, Guyana. Sequence 2 of 3

Piotr Naskrecki / Sand Fly (Lutzomyia sp) feeding on human blood, these flies are vectors of many serious tropical diseases, Guyana. Sequence 1 of 3

Ernie Janes / Gadfly (Tabanus bromius) biting flesh on human, UK

Sergey Gorshkov / Leopard (Panthera pardus) feeding on prey in tree, Okavango Delta, Botswana, January

Sergey Gorshkov / Pack of African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) tearing apart antelope carcass, Okavango Delta, Botswana, July

Sergey Gorshkov / African lion (Panthera leo) male feeding on dead Wildebeest, Okavango Delta, Botswana, September

Anup Shah / Young African lion cub (Panthera leo) carrying dead Wildebeest calf (Connochaetes taurinus) Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya

Ann & Steve Toon / African lion (Panthera leo) lioness dragging warthog kill, Kwandwe private reserve, Eastern Cape, South Africa, January

Ann & Steve Toon / African lion (Panthera leo) lioness with cubs feeding on warthog kill, Kwandwe private reserve, Eastern Cape, South Africa, January

Daniel Heuclin / Mosquito (Anopheles gambiae) feeding on human in controlled conditions. The body is becoming engorged with blood. Malaria vector. Africa, June. Engorging sequence 3 of 3.

Sergey Gorshkov / Kamchatka Brown bear (Ursus arctos beringianus) feeding on salmon caught in river, Kamchatka, Far east Russia, July

Sergey Gorshkov / Red fox (Vulpes vulpes) fox with hare prey camouflaged on snow, Kamchatka, Far east Russia, January

Pete Oxford / Antarctic Giant Petrel (Macronectes giganteus) feeding on Southern Elephant Seal (Mirounga leonina) bull carcass and mantling to prevent competition, Sea Lion Island, Falkland Islands

Anup Shah / Lion pride (Panthera leo) feeding on a recent kill. Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. August 2009.

Anup Shah / Lion pride (Panthera leo) feeding on a recent kill. Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. August 2009

Steven Kazlowski / Polar bear (Ursus maritimus) large male scavenging the carcass of a bowhead whale, Balaena mysticetus, in early autumn, Barter Island, 1002 area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska

Steven Kazlowski / Polar bear (Ursus maritimus) large boar scavenging the carcass of a Bowhead Whale (Balaena mysticetus) alongside a flock of gulls, in early autumn, Barter Island, 1002 area of the Arctic National Wild...

Bryan and Cherry Alexander / Inuit hunters eating Clams from stomach of Walrus(Odobenus rosmarus). Siorapaluk. Northwest Greenland, 1977

Tim Laman / Borneo tiger leech (Haemadipsa picta) feeding on human skin, Gunung Palung National Park, Borneo, West Kalimantan, Indonesia

Tim Laman / Borneo Tiger leech (Haemadipsa picta) engorged with blood opn human hand, Gunung Palung National Park, Borneo, West Kalimantan, Indonesia

Pete Oxford / Bull Southern Elephant Seal (Mirounga leonina) after fighting for take over of the harem. Even a short fight usually results in both bulls getting badly cut on their necks and faces. The Tussock Bird...

Stephen Dalton / Bedbug (Cimex lectularius) feeding on human skin, UK

Nick Upton / Sequence 2 / 4. Cleg fly / Horsefly (Haematopa pluvialis) sucking blood from photographer's hand Wiltshire pastureland, UK, June.

Nick Upton / Sequence 1 / 4. Cleg fly / Horsefly (Haematopa pluvialis) about to pierce human skin a second time with blade like mouthparts. Wiltshire pastureland, UK, June.

Nick Upton / Sequence 3 / 4. Cleg fly / Horsefly (Haematopa pluvialis) excreting excess water as it swells up with blood sucked from photographer's arm, Wiltshire pastureland, UK, June.

Nick Upton / Sequence 4 / 4. Cleg fly / Horsefly (Haematopa pluvialis) swollen with blood sucked from photographer's hand, Wiltshire pastureland, UK, June.

Stephen Dalton / Yellow fever mosquito (Aedes sp) taking blood from human, Note drop of clear liquid being exuded, from the east coast of South Africa

Doug Wechsler / American Dog Tick / Wood tick (Dermacentor variabilis) adult on skin full of blood; Schuylkill Center, Pennsylvania, USA

Patricio Robles Gil / African lion {Panthera leo} male at Buffalo kill, Kruger NP, South Africa

Yva Momatiuk & John Eastcott / Grizzly Bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) female guarding caribou meat, Richardson Mountains, Dempster Highway, Yukon, Canada

Barry Mansell / Hairy-legged Vampire Bat (Diphylla ecaudata) drinking blood from a chicken's foot, Mexico,

Barry Mansell / Hairy-legged Vampire Bat (Diphylla ecaudata) drinking blood from a chicken's foot, Mexico,

Barry Mansell / Hairy-legged Vampire Bat (Diphylla ecaudata) taking blood from a chicken, Mexico, December

Laurie Campbell / Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) with trout on feeding perch, Spey Valley, Scotland, July

Stephen Dalton / Mosquito feeding on human blood

Bernard Castelein / Steppe Eagle (Aquila nipalensis) feeding on prey, Rajasthan, India

Warwick Sloss / African lion {Panthera leo} female covered in mud and blood after feeding on a hippo kill, Katavi NP, Tanzania.

Warwick Sloss / African lion cubs {Panthera leo} feeding on a hippo kill, Katavi NP, Tanzania.

Warwick Sloss / African lion {Panthera leo} male covered in mud and blood after feeding on a hippo kill, Katavi NP, Tanzania.

Warwick Sloss / African lion {Panthera leo} snarling female covered in mud and blood feeding on a hippo kill, Katavi NP, Tanzania.

Terry Andrewartha / Arctic fox {Vulpes lagopus} feeding on bird prey, Hudson Bay, Canada

Wild Wonders of Europe / Widstrand / Griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus) head covered in blood from feeding, Montejo de la Vega, Segovia, Castilla y Leon, Spain, March 2009

Wild Wonders of Europe / Widstrand / Griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus) walking, head covered in blood from feeding, Montejo de la Vega, Segovia, Castilla y Leon, Spain, March 2009

Wild Wonders of Europe / Widstrand / Griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus) head covered in blood from feeding, Montejo de la Vega, Segovia, Castilla y Leon, Spain, March 2009

Wild Wonders of Europe / Widstrand / Griffon vultures (Gyps fulvus) heads covered in blood from feeding, Montejo de la Vega, Segovia, Castilla y Leon, Spain, March 2009