Best Wildlife Photos of the Week

The reclusive African forest elephant among the tall grass of the savannah of the Lope national park in Gabon, west Africa which is under threat from illegal poachers. The government has requested the help of the British army to help train the park rangers in anti-poaching techniques.
Photograph: Richard Pohle/Pool

Ullswater lake in the Lake District, Cumbria, England.
Photograph: Benjamin Graham/Barcroft Images

Beams of light filter down as a blue whale swims by, on its annual migration off the coast of Timor Leste.
Photograph: Paul Hilton/Conservation International

Endangered Francois’ langurs monkeys at the Mayang river national nature reserve in Yanhe Tujia, Guizhou, China.
Photograph: Yang Wenbin/Xinhua/Barcroft Images

Sea otters at the Elkhorn Slough reserve in Moss Landing on the California coast.
Photograph: Eric Risberg/AP