See the world in close-up in these intricate images of nature

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Evident Image of the Year global winner: Cross-section of a Cosmic Orange aster flower with pollen grains maturing inside anthers. Captured by Igor Siwanowicz of the United States. Igor Siwanowicz of the United States was selected as the global winner for his striking cross- section image of a Cosmic Orange Mexican aster flower that vividly depicts pollen grains maturing inside anthers. To create this image, Siwanowicz embedded isolated florets in agarose, sectioned on a vibratome and stained with Calcofluor White and Congo Red dyes. The sample was dehydrated, cleared and mounted in methyl salicylate. Siwanowicz chose to image this flower to observe how aster florets are organized before the flower opens. ?I was lucky to pick my flower buds at the right stage of development, with the pollen grains almost fully mature but still bound together in a mass,? Siwanowicz explained. ?I think this image shows the true beauty of a common flower that most of us take for granted by extending it well beyond what we can see with the naked eye. The beauty of natural form and design is present on very different scales, sometimes almost in a fractal manner?as we continue to zoom in, the form may lose familiarity but also become a new emotional experience.? — Cross-section of a Cosmic Orange aster flower

Igor Siwanowicz

These exquisite images reveal some of the intricate views of animals and plants captured by researchers from 29 countries who entered the Evident Image of the Year competition. The prize recognises the best in scientific microscopic imaging worldwide.

The winning entry (pictured above) shows a cross-section of a bloom from the “Cosmic Orange” variety of the Mexican aster (Cosmos sulphureus), with pollen grains maturing inside its anthers. It was taken by Igor Siwanowicz, a research neurobiologist at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Virginia.

Laurent Formery (USA) Juvenile sea star skeleton. Sea star (Patiria miniata) juvenile stained with calcein and DAPI. — Juvenile sea star (Patiria miniata)

Laurent Formery

Siwanowicz, who collected the flower buds for his shot on a post-lunch walk around the campus pond, said in an announcement about the prize that he chose to enter the image because it “shows that the beauty of a common flower that most of us take for granted can extend beyond what we can see with the naked eye”.

“The beauty of natural form and design is present on very different scales, sometimes almost in a fractal manner – as we continue to zoom in, the form may lose familiarity, but also become a new emotional experience,” he said.

Raghuram Annadana (India) A cuckoo wasp. Cuckoo wasps are captivating insects, showcasing a dazzling array of iridescent colors. — Cuckoo wasp

Raghuram Annadana

The other images shown here all won honourable mentions in the contest for their views of a variety of animals. In the shot second from top, Laurent Formery used vivid stains to highlight the skeleton of a juvenile sea star (Patiria miniata) from the Asterinidae family.

Above is an image of a cuckoo wasp, resplendent in its iridescent colours, captured by Raghuram Annadana, with the image below showing a zebrafish head, taken by Yue Rong Tan.