The Natural History Museum in London is previewing some of the more than 60,000 photographs entered for this year's "Wildfire Photographer of the Year" competition.

       A record-breaking 60,636 photographs entered this year's competition. The exhibition will open Oct. 17, featuring 100 powerful images that captured Earth's most compelling wildlife stories, the Natural History Museum said in a press release.

       An international panel of wildlife experts, photographers and scientists are selecting the winning images in secret, judging each photo on creativity and technical skill. The competition will celebrate its 61st year as the world's premier showcase for nature photography.

       TV presenters and conservationists Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin will announce the Grand Title winners at an Oct. 14 ceremony, which will stream live on the museum's YouTube channel. The exhibition will pair striking artistry with scientific data, including the museum's Biodiversity Intactness Index, to help visitors understand and advocate for endangered ecosystems, the museum said.

       Here are some photos from the exhibition:

       A potter wasp turned Bidyut Kalita's home in northeast India into an unexpected wildlife studio. The determined insect caught Kalita's eye as it built a mud nest on his picture frame, prompting him to prop open his door and wait. His patience paid off when he snapped the wasp mid-flight, carrying a paralyzed caterpillar that would feed its future offspring.

       For three years, Lakshitha Karunarathna tracked a heartbreaking scene in Sri Lanka - elephants scavenging for food in garbage dumps. His drone captured a lone elephant picking through mounds of trash in Ampara, where plastic waste proved deadly. Twenty elephants lost their lives at this single site after eating indigestible wrappers.

       Pilot Jassen Todorov found unexpected beauty while landing at San Francisco International Airport. His aerial shot of sunset-lit salt ponds tells environmental success story, where 6,000 hectares of industrial salt flats are being transformed back into thriving wetlands. The restoration project tears down old dikes, letting nature reclaim what industry once took.

       Deep in a crystal-clear Florida river, Isaac Szabo Wrapped his feet around a drowned tree to capture an intimate glimpse of longnose gar courtship. His underwater shot caught more than just the spawning fish - a passing turtle completed the scene, showcasing the diversity of Florida's waterways.

       In the ruins of an ancient Indian monument, Sitaram Raul endured an unusual hazard to photograph fruit bats flying. Working in complete darkness, he focused his camera where he thought the bats might appear, all while dodging what he called their "random pooping."

       Emmanuel Tardy stuck in traffic due to a three-toed sloth's journey across a road in Costa Rica decides to photograph this unexpected moment. The animal clung to a barbed wire fence post forcing Tardy to wait patiently. The scene highlighted a growing challenge for sloths as urban development fragments their forest homes, though hope emerged in new conservation corridors being built to reconnect their habitat.

       Braving the stinging tentacles of Pacific sea nettles, Ralph Pace dove into a massive jellyfish "smack" in Monterey Bay. Protected only by petroleum jelly on his exposed skin, he captured an dreamy scene.

       In Slindon Wood, West Sussex, England, UK, Kutub Uddin discovered with his macro lens a line of blueberry-sized spheres - the reproductive parts of a fascinating slime mould. These tiny organisms, each just 1-2 millimeters wide, came together to create what Kutub called a "bizarre family portrait," complete with a lone yellow insect egg.

       In Tanzania's Serengeti, Gabriella Comi witnessed an unexpected face-off between predator and serpent. As lions dozed in the scorching midday sun, her guide spotted a cobra slithering toward the sleeping cats. Within moments one lion confronted the intruder, creating a standoff between Africa's most notorious hunters.

       In bone-chilling temperatures of minus 35 degrees Celsius, Amit Eshel's dream of photographing Arctic wolves finally came true. After 12 days of waiting on Canada's remote Ellesmere Island, a pack of wolves came so close he could smell their breath.

       After two months of watching emperor penguin chicks in Antarctica, Bertie Gregory's drone captured a heart-stopping moment. While most chicks used ice ramps to reach the ocean, his lens caught a group of youngsters taking a 15-metre plunge into the icy waters below. Scientists warned this risky behavior might become more common as climate change forces penguins to breed on higher ice shelves.

       While on vacation to France's Camargue wetlands, photographer Leana Kuster watched in fascination as a greater flamingo performed an awkward feat - scratching its head with its signature long leg.

       Hours of tracking through Bernal Heights Park led Parham Pourahmad to a remarkable shot of two coyotes in the morning light. The photographer captured a male coyote's amber eyes through the black-tipped tail of its companion. Coyotes were very common in San Francisco but they had disappeared from the city but are now beginning to return.

       Patience paid off for Kesshav Vikram in Russia's remote Kamchatka Peninsula. Days of waiting resulted in a perfect moment - a brown bear strolling along Kurile Lake just as the Iliinsky volcano emerged from the clouds. the bear was heading to feast with others at sockeye salmon in Eurasia's largest salmon spawning ground.

       Standing tall among the grasses of Bradgate Park, Jamie Smart caught a red deer stag in its autumn glory. The photographer stretched above the grass line to capture the perfect angle of the bellowing stag, its newly grown antlers gleaming after shedding their velvet coating.