Wildlife photo competition selects finalists

A charging gorilla and a tern taking to the air are among the images to make this year's final of one of the world's top natural history photography competitions.

The judges were impressed by the young photographer's use of light

This image, titled "Tern Style", captured the moment a seabird took to the skies and was taken by 13-year-old Ilkka Rasanen from Finland.
The judges were impressed by the teenager's use of light in the photo, and the image was highly commended in the 11-14 age-group of the Young Photographers competition.
Despite his young age, Ilkka has already been shortlisted on two previous occasions for his efforts.

Shortlisted images were whittled down from 41,000 entries

An image of a male moutain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei), by Andy Rouse from Wales, captured the moment the young ape charged at the photographer and his companions during a visit to the Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda.
The photo was highly commended in the competition's Behaviour: Mammals category by the judges. Like Ilkka, this is not the first time that Andy has been shortlisted by the judges, having won the competition's 2010 Gerald Durrell Award for Endangered Wildlife.
The two images are among the 108 images that will make up this year's exhibition that will open in October at the Natural History Museum, London.
The judging panel of the Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year spent three months shifting through almost 41,000 submissions from 95 countries before deciding upon their shortlist.
The competition is owned by the Natural History Museum, London, and BBC Wildlife Magazine.