Thai Panda: Just going for a dip! Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2010 competition kicks off with jaw-dropping images (and not a 'model' fox in sight!)

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

The drop by Andrew Parkinson Animals in their Environment - Highly Commended: With his legs dangling over the edge, Andrew Parkinson tried to avoid any foreground showing in the picture by leaning right into the gale-force westerly

A daredevil seabird swoops over a cliff in a kamikaze-like dive - taken by a photographer Andrew Parkinson who is scared of heights.

This jaw-dropping image is just one of the entries in this year's Veolia Environment Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition which kicks off with an exhibition at the Natural History Museum on 22 October.

The competition will be stiff this year with mind-boggling photographs ranging from harrowing images of dead frogs in California to hoards of migrating monarch butterflies.

The hidden plague by Joel Sartore One Earth Award - Highly Commended: This is a crime scene in a remote corner of California, high in the Sixty Lakes basin area of the Sierra Nevada: mountain yellow-legged frog corpses lie belly-up

The Thoughtful Baboon by Adrian Bailey of South Africa

Celestial Cathedral by Kent Miklendra from Australia

Even more amazing is that all the entrants are amateur photographers competing for the prestigious title of Wildlife Photographer of the Year as well as £10,000 in prize money.

Judges will be hoping for plain sailing this year though after last year's winner was mired in controversy.

Fishing Frenzy by Tomasz Racznyski of Poland

Catch of the Day by Jordan Calame from the USA

Jose Luis Rodriguez's winning 'fairytale' photograph of a fox jumping over a gate was disqualified in January after judges concluded that the fox in the picture was a 'model' and in breach of Rule 10.

Now in its 46th year, the competition is trumpeted as most prestigious competition of its kind in the world and is an international showcase for amateur wildlife photography.