Four black ink sketches of elephant seal faces at different blubbery angles. Usually when asked what animal someone considers to be the most uncomfortable, they’ll say something about spiders, or parasitic wasps, or botflies, perhaps an octopus (unfair to the invertebrates). For me, I find elephant seals (genus: Mirounga) to be deeply uncomfortable, particularly the males. Their dominance displays and clashing fights leave sprays of blood arching through the air, and sometimes crush their own pups under their gargantuan weight (up to 4,000 kilos).

Up to three out of four undescribed plant species are already threatened with extinction.

Conservationists are working to restore the Caledonian pine forest to boost the country's bio-diversity.