FLO4612063: Title page with Willem Ysbrantsz Bontekoe's illustration of the dodo. Title page from Hugh Edwin Strickland and Alexander Gordon Melville's The Dodo and its Kindred, London, Reeve, Benham and Reeve, 1848. / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612079: Spiral Galaxy NGC 4921 - Unusual Spiral NGC 4921 in the Coma Galaxy Cluster - Galaxy NGC 4921 photographed by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Located in the cluster of Coma galaxies (Abell 1656) is about 320 million light years old, this spiral galaxy presents an unusual structure with poorly marked arms; some young blue stars are visible but the activity of star formation here is much less strong than in other spiral galaxies. In the background, many more distant galaxies appear. This very deep image taken with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows the spiral galaxy NGC 4921 along with a spectacular backdrop of more distant galaxies. It was created from a total of 80 separate pictures through yellow and near - infrared filters. The Coma Galaxy Cluster, in the northern constellation of Coma Berenices, the hair of Queen Berenice, is one of the closest very rich collections of galaxies in the nearby Universe. The cluster, also known as Abell 1656, is about 320 million light - years from Earth and contains more than 1000 members. The brightest galaxies, including NGC 4921 shown here, were discovered back in the late 18th century by William Herschel. The galaxies in rich clusters undergo many interactions and mergers that tend to gradually turn gas - rich spirals into elliptical systems without much active star formation. As a result there are far more ellipticals and fewer spirals in the Coma Cluster than are found in quieter corners of the Universe. NGC 4921 is one of the rare spirals in Coma, and a rather unusual one - - it is an example of an “” anaemic spiral”” where the normal vigorous star formation that creates a spiral galaxy's familiar bright arms is much less intense. As a result there is just a delicate swirl of dust in a ring around the galaxy, accompanied by some bright young blue stars that are clearly separated out by Hubble's sharp vision. Much of the pale spiral structure in the outer / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612096: Spiral galaxy M63 (NGC 5055) in Hunting Dogs - Spiral galaxy M63 - The spiral galaxy M63 (NGC 5055) is about 35 million years away - light from Earth. Image obtained with a 50 cm telescope, composite of several poses. M63 (NGC 5055) is a spiral glaxy in the contellation Canes Venatici at about 35 million light - years from Earth / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612102: Illustration of a Rodrigues solitaire, 1848 (lithograph) / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612151: Spiral Galaxy M63 in Hunting Dogs - Spiral galaxy M63 in Canes Venatici - The spiral galaxy M63 (NGC 5055) is located about 35 million years ago - light from Earth. Image obtained with a 61 cm telescope, composite of several poses. M63 (NGC 5055) is a spiral glaxy in the contellation Canes Venatici at about 35 million light - years from Earth. Image taken with a 24 - inch telescope / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612157: Centaurus A Elliptical Galaxy (NGC 5128) in the Centaur - Galaxy Centaurus A - The NGC 5128 galaxy is about 13 million years away - light from Earth. This image obtained by the Hubble Space Telescope in 1998 shows the star flames that occur in the dark band of the galaxy. In blue, these are the clusters of newly shaped young stars. At the top left, a photo of the galaxy obtained from the ground. This giant galaxy is a powerful radio source known as Centaurus A. It is an active galaxy whose energy comes from a supermassive black hole. NGC 5128 is the nearest large elliptical galaxies to our sun. It is also the nearest of the giant radio galaxies, possessing an active galactic nucleus (AGN) and optically one of the most luminous galaxies in the sky. Among many other things NGC 5128 is also the prototypical postmerger elliptical galaxy. Structural peculiarities including the prominent rotating disk of stars and gas and the complex shell structure of its halo point to a large scale merger within the last billion years. Tidal streams of young stars have also been identified in the halo of NGC 5128 thought to have occurred by cannibalization of a nearby gas rich dwarf galaxy some 300 million years ago, long after the large scale merger. Elliptical galaxies are typically devoid of gas, dust and young stars. The unexpected presence of gas rich disk elements within the structure of NGC 5128 supports the current belief that accretions and mergers of low mass galaxies may be an important agent in the evolution of galaxy formation. As a radio galaxy, NGC 5128 belongs to the subgroup of galaxies called Active Galaxies, which include Quasars, Seyfert galaxies, Blazars and Radio Galaxies. Active galaxies are distinguished by their prodigious energy output which cannot be explained by their stellar populations and must have another source. Active galaxies have in common an “Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN)”” which is beli / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612158: Back view of skull, upper and lower view of lower jaw, inner view of jaw, and circle of sclerotic bones in the dodo. Lithograph from Hugh Edwin Strickland and Alexander Gordon Melville's The Dodo and its Kindred, London, Reeve, Benham and Reeve, 1848. / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612187: Galaxy NGC 5101 in Hydra - Galaxy NGC 5101 in Hydr / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612201: Centaurus A elliptical galaxy (NGC 5128) in the Centaurus - Galaxy Centaurus A (NGC 5128) - The galaxy NGC 5128 is located about 13 million years away from Earth. This Giant Galaxy is a powerful radio source known as Centaurus A. It is an active galaxy whose energy comes from a supermassive black hole. Image obtained from the 3.9m telescope of Siding Spring, Australia. Centaurus A is a most unusual galaxy. The circular, uniformly bright portion is composed of several thousand million stars, most of them old and yellowish. The galaxy is girded by a dense dust lane which obscures and reddens the light of stars behind it. Some younger, blue stars can be seen at the edges of the dust cloud. One of the nearer galaxies, 13 million light years away, Centaurus A is the most powerful nearby radio source and is also a copious source of X - and gamma rays as well as visible and infrared radiation / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612202: Galaxy Centaurus A (NGC 5128) x-ray view - radio - visible - Galaxy Centaurus A in different wavelengths - false-coloured view of the 30,000-year long jet - light escaping from the nucleus of the Centaurus A galaxy where a massive black hole is suspected. On this composite image obtained in X, radio, and visible, two large X-emission arcs surround this jet over a diameter of 25,000 years - light. These hot arcs could be the result of a gigantic explosion that occurred 10 million years ago in the nucleus of the galaxy. The galaxy NGC 5128 is located about 13 million light years away from Earth. A composite X - ray (blue), radio (pink and green), and optical (orange and yellow) image of the galaxy Centaurus A presents a stunning view of a galaxy in turmoil. A broad band of dust and cold gas is bisected at an angle by opposing jets of high - energy particles blasting away from the supermassive black hole in the nucleus. Two large arcs of X - ray emitting hot gas were discovered in the outskirts of the galaxy on a plane perpendicular to the jets. The arcs of multimillion degree gas appear to be part of a projected ring 25,000 light years in diameter. The size and location of the ring indicate that it may have been produced in a titanic explosion that occurred about ten million years ago / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612222: Metatarsus bones of the dodo, Raphus cucullatus 1-10, crowned pigeon, Goura coronata 12-17, tooth-billed pigeon, Didunculus strigirostris 18,19 and other birds. Illustration drawn and lithographed by Joseph Dinkel from Hugh Edwin Strickland and Alexander Gordon Melville's The Dodo and its Kindred, London, Reeve, Benham and Reeve, 1848. / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612254: Sea eagle, Haliaeetus albicilla. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612272: Stock dove or pigeon, Columba oenas. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612297: Long-tailed duck, Clangula hyemalis. Vulnerable. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612310: Red shank, Tringa totanus. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612322: Lesser redpoll, Carduelis cabaret. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612348: Galaxy of Hunting Dogs (M51) seen in X - The Whirlpool Galaxy seen in X - ray - The spiral galaxy M51 (NGC 5194) is located about 31 million years ago - light from Earth. This galaxy is double; two galaxies interact: the largest, NGC 5194, the smallest NGC 5195. X-ray image obtained by the Chandra space telescope on June 20, 2000. The Whirlpool Galaxy lies approximately 31 million light years from earth. This spectacular galaxy is paired with a smaller, more distant companion whose matter is being disrupted by the larger spiral in a gravitational tug of war. Eventually, the shape of both will be altered over many more millions of years. Image taken in X - ray by the Chandra space telescope on June 20, 2000 / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612354: Spiral Galaxy M51 in Hunting Dogs - Spiral galaxy M51 in Canes Venatici - The spiral galaxy M51 (NGC 5194) is located about 31 million years ago - light from Earth. This galaxy is double; two galaxies interact: the largest, NGC 5194, the smallest NGC 5195. M51 (NGC 5194) is located 31 million light - years away in the constellation Canes Venatici (the Hunting Dogs). It was one of the first discoveries made by Charles Messier in 1773, and it was the first galaxy where spiral structure was observed, by Lord Rosse in 1845. A faint companion galaxy, NGC 5195, seen here to the right of M51, is interacting with M51 / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612376: Tawny owl, Strix aluco. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612386: Spotted crake, Porzana porzana. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612402: Turtle dove, Streptopelia turtur. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds” (1794-1819). Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612415: Sand martin, Riparia riparia, with nest and egg. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds” (1794-1819). Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612455: Common goldeneye, Bucephala clangula. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds” (1794-1819). Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612485: Woodlark, Lullula arborea. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612491: Spiral Galaxy M83 in Hydra - Spiral galaxy M83 in Hydra - The galaxy M83 (NGC 5236) is located about 15 million years away from Earth. This galaxy is intermediate between a classic spiral and a barree spiral. Image obtained with a 35 cm telescope, 11 hours of cumulative poses. M83 (NGC 5236) is located in the southern constellation Hydra at 15 million light years from the sun. It is classified as intermediate between normal and barred spiral galaxies. Image taken with 14.5”” RCOS telescope, 11 Hours of exposure / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612531: Tufted duck, Aythya fuligula. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612542: Spiral Galaxy M83 in Hydra - M83 (NGC 5236) - The galaxy M83 (NGC 5236) is about 15 million light years away from Earth. This galaxy is intermediate between a classic spiral and a barree spiral. Composite images obtained from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), the Subaru Telescope and the 2.2m MPG telescope of the ESO. M83 (NGC 5236) is located in the southern constellation Hydra at 15 million light years from the sun. It is classified as intermediate between normal and barred spiral galaxies. Composite image from four data sources (8.2 Meter Subaru Telescope, Hubble Space Telescope, 2.2 - meter Max Planck - ESO telescope and 14.5” RC) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612550: Northern three-toed woodpecker. Picoides tridactylus. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612556: Black guillemot or tystie, Cepphus grylle, with fish in its beak. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612581: Galaxy M83 in Hydra - Galaxy M83 in Hydra - The galaxy M83 (NGC 5236) is about 15 million years away from Earth. This galaxy is a barred spiral. Composite image obtained from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and Magellan Telescope. M83 (NGC 5236) is located in the southern constellation Hydra at 15 million light years from the sun. Image taken with the Hubble space telescope (HST) and Magellan telescope / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612630: Lesser pettychaps, hippolay motacilla. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612654: Bar-tailed godwit, Limosa lapponica. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

FLO4612661: Cirl bunting, Emberiza cirlus. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Edward Donovan from his own “Natural History of British Birds,” London, 1794-1819. Edward Donovan (1768-1837) was an Anglo-Irish amateur zoologist, writer, artist and engraver. He wrote and illustrated a series of volumes on birds, fish, shells and insects, opened his own museum of natural history in London, but later he fell on hard times and died penniless., Donovan, Edward (1768-1837) / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612662: Spiral galaxy M101 in the Great Bear - Spiral galaxy M101 in Ursa Major - The galaxy M101 (NGC 5457) is located about 27 million years away from Earth. Image obtained with a 40 cm telescope, composite of several images, 2h30 pose. M101 (NGC 5457) is about 27 Mly away. Composite image obtained with a RC 16”” telescope / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612686: Spiral galaxy M101 in the Great Bear - Spiral galaxy M101 in Ursa Major - The galaxy M101 (NGC 5457) is located about 27 million years away from Earth. It spans more than 170,000 light years, almost double the size of our galaxy. We think that of the trillion stars in it, 100 billion stars could be similar to our Sun. Composite image obtained from 51 different clicks made by the Hubble space telescope from March 1994 to January 2003 and from ground photos at Kitt Peak and CFHT in Hawaii. Spiral galaxy M101 is a beautiful, large, face - on spiral galaxy located about 27 million light - years away in the constellation Ursa Major. This galaxy's portrait is actually composed of 51 individual Hubble exposures, in addition to elements from images from ground - based photos. The giant spiral disk of stars, dust, and gas is 170,000 light - years across or almost twice the diameter of our galaxy, the Milky Way. M101 is estimated to contain at least one trillion stars. Approximately 100 billion of these stars could be like our Sun in terms of temperature and lifetime. The galaxy's spiral arms are sprinkled with large regions of star - forming nebulae. These nebulae are areas of intense star formation within giant molecular hydrogen clouds. Brilliant young clusters of hot, blue, newborn stars trace out the spiral arms. The disk of M101 is so thin that Hubble easily sees many more distant galaxies lying behind the galaxy / Bridgeman Images

PIX4612690: Spiral galaxy M101 in the Great Bear - Spiral galaxy M101 in Ursa Major - The galaxy M101 (NGC 5457) is located about 27 million years away from Earth. Image obtained with a large amateur telescope of 30 cm, composite of several images. Spiral galaxy M101 is a beautiful, large, face - on spiral galaxy located about 27 million light - years away in the constellation Ursa Major / Bridgeman Images