It's just bizarre... and utterly beautiful at the same time.

This fascinating picture by Frank Deschandol is a Highly Commended image in this year's Wildlife Photographer of the Year (WPY) competition.

 Frenchman Frank's remarkable photo was taken in the Peruvian amazon, near Iquitos, at the Madre Selva biological station. "At first, I was wondering what could be this weird thing," he said.
 "Then, I got closer and I was really impressed by this sight and the perfect symmetry of the fungus," he told BBC News.
 Frank had seen some other parasitised beetles, but none in quite so photogenic a pose.
 Parasitism, where one organism adapts its whole mode of living around the exploitation of another, is one of the great marvels of evolution. And on occasions, it can become wonderfully sophisticated. In this case, the fungus spreads inside the poor weevil, taking chemical control of the creature and compelling it to climb. When it reaches a suitable height - for the fungus - the insect will lock down on the stem and die. Look and you can see the glaze has gone from its eyes.
 Meanwhile, fuelled by the weevil's insides, the fungus will start to grow those exquisite fruiting bodies. The capsules at the top will eventually burst and release countless tiny spores to infect new prey.
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