Benetton also invites people from around the world to upload diptyched images that mimic kissing duos, alongside a message of tolerance and ‘unhate’ on their ‘KISS WALL‘.

Hu Jintao, president of China and Barack Obama

The Pope and Ahmed Mohamed el-Tayeb, Imam of the Al-Azhar mosque in Cairo

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Il and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak

US President Barack Obama and Hugo Chavez of Venezuela

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy

British wildlife lover Roy Hancliff captures bird in mid-flight using a home-made photography set-up in his garden in Canada’s British Columbia. Included in his collection is this mid-air duel between two pine siskins in a conflict over their territory.

Roy, 65, from Oxford, has also managed to freeze hummingbirds – famed for their speed, with wingbeats of up to 90 times a second.

Another picture shows a small chickadee flying straight at Roy’s camera like a low-flying bomber.

Roy captures the birds in the back garden of his log cabin in British Columbia, Canada, and polishes the process by firing five flashes simultaneously at very high speeds.

To highlight the birds, he paints his own coloured backgrounds by hand and sets them behind the birds’ feeding area. By doing this he removes the ‘clutter’ of the trees and plants in his garden and makes sure the birds really stand out for the viewer.

Roy said: “When I take the shot it’s so quick I don’t see it. Our eyes simply aren’t fast enough to register all the action that is happening right in your own back garden. It’s only afterwards when I check what I have that I know what images I’ve got. You really have no idea of what you are getting until you review the pictures later. I’m stunned by the beauty of a regular bird you see all the time suddenly looking very different when it’s frozen in time.”

Roy moved to Okanagan Bay in Canada’s British Columbia with wife Sharon, 46, in 2003 after retiring as a home renovator in Spain. He took up nature photography seriously after realising the birds wintering close to his home were so hungry for the seeds he leaves out for them that they would visit his garden in vast numbers. Roy now leaves out food for the birds and has a camouflaged igloo which he uses to get within three metres of the birds and take his stunningly sharp pictures.

A black-capped chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) diving in Roy Hancliff’s garden

Three pine siskins in confrontation in Roy Hancliff’s garden

A hummingbird in flight, feeding on a pink geranium in Roy Hancliff’s garden

A house finch (Carpodacus mexicanus) mid flight

A black-headed grosbeak (Pheucticus melanocephalus) in flight

A hummingbird in flight

Black-billed magpies in Roy Hancliff’s Okanagan Valley garden

An osprey in mid fligh

You can see more Roy Hancliff’s photos HERE.

Combining his love for astronomy and photography, physics graduate Laurent created the collection called ‘Moon Games’ on a beach near his home in France.

The eggs in this story range in diameter from 0.7 to 2 millimeters. The images were made with a scanning electron microscope, which uses beams of electrons to trace the surfaces of objects. The resulting black-and-white images were then colored to reflect the eggs’ natural appearance

Photographic coverage produced in cooperation with Prüftechnik Uri and School of Applied Sciences, FHNW

Julia Heliconian Butterfly Egg

Perched on the tendril of a Passiflora plant, the egg of the Julia heliconian butterfly may be safe from hungry ants. This species lays its eggs almost exclusively on this plant’s twisted vines.

Stinkbug Eggs

Stinkbugs often lay their eggs in clumps. Individual eggs are glued not only to each other but also to the leaf on which they are left. The delicate projections may aid, like snorkels, in respiration.

Owl Butterfly Egg

The mosaic pattern on an owl butterfly egg looks like a landing pad. At the center is a minute opening, called a micropyle, through which the sperm enters the egg.

Blue Morpho Butterfly Egg

The red band signals a chemical reaction that follows fertilization. Inside the egg is the germ of a blue morpho, one of the world’s largest butterflies, with a wingspan of five to eight inches.

Adonis Blue Butterfly Egg

The Adonis blue butterfly is rare because it’s choosy. It lays its eggs (like the one above) only on horseshoe vetch, a European perennial. What’s more, it looks for patches cropped by rabbits that allow easy landing.

Red Lacewing Butterfly Egg

On this butterfly egg, the lacy pattern marks the micropyle, where sperm enters. A similar design appears on the scaly wings that gave the red lacewing butterfly its name.

Dingy Skipper Egg

The egg of the dingy skipper is laid on bird’s-foot trefoil. As its name suggests, the grown butterfly, found throughout Europe and in parts of Asia, is not known for its beauty.

Large White Butterfly Egg

The yellow eggs of the large white butterfly are laid in clumps on the undersides of cabbage leaves (above) and brussels sprouts.

Zebra Longwing Butterfly Egg

The orange hue of this zebra longwing butterfly egg may warn predators: “Eat me if you dare.” The threat would not be idle. The egg contains cyanide and other toxins ingested by adults from the plants they eat.

The European common frog (Rana temporaria) has adapted to a wide variety of conditions, increasing its range over most of Europe.

Emerging from a partially frozen pond more than 6,000 feet high in the Alps, European common frogs (Rana temporaria) set out to find mates and begin breeding activities.

The search for mates often begins underwater, before surface ice has melted. Photographer could hear the calls of male frogs in spring even through the ice of Alpine ponds.

Frogs mate in a position called amplexus, with the smaller male clasping the female from behind in a ride that can last two days or more. As she lays eggs, he expels sperm to fertilize them.

Frog pairs can begin hibernation in amplexus, turning it into a months-long embrace that may provide a breeding advantage by allowing mating as quickly as possible once warm weather arrives.

Eggs of high-elevation frogs may be 30 percent larger than those of lowland females, giving tadpoles a head start.

A young Antarctic Emperor penguin has taken a rare wrong turn and ended up stranded on a New Zealand beach.

Emperor penguins typically spend their entire lives in Antarctica and almost never make landfall near humans.

It has been 44 years since a wild Emperor penguin was last sighted in New Zealand.

Conservation experts say the penguin is about 10 months old, and stands about 80cm high.

It likely took to the water several months ago to search for squid and krill and lost its way.

Experts say the bird is healthy but will need to find its way back south if it is to survive.
A resident discovered the bird while walking her dog on Monday evening at Peka Peka Beach on the southwest coast of the North Island, 60km north of Wellington.

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