From violent underwater bird battles - to blood-sucking insects and peanut butter-loving mice - this year's Veolia Environnment Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition attracted 48,000 entries from 98 countries.
The images judged to be the best 100 go on show at the Natural History Museum in October. The overall winners will be kept secret until then, but here - with one of the judges Roz Kidman Cox - look at some of the commended photographs which capture nature's beauty and fragility.
All the winning images will be on display at the Natural History Museum, London, between 19 October 2012 and 3 March 2013.
BBC Nature - Wildlife watchers: beauty and brutality
The images judged to be the best 100 go on show at the Natural History Museum in October. The overall winners will be kept secret until then, but here - with one of the judges Roz Kidman Cox - look at some of the commended photographs which capture nature's beauty and fragility.
All the winning images will be on display at the Natural History Museum, London, between 19 October 2012 and 3 March 2013.
BBC Nature - Wildlife watchers: beauty and brutality