The week in wildlife

A group of sparrows search for food among the flowers at a park in Washington, US Photograph: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images

A roseate spoonbill (Platalea ajaja) flies over Puerto Parada in Jiquilisco Bay, San Salvador. It has a long bill lined with sensitive nerve endings that help the bird locate and capture prey Photograph: Jose Cabezas/AFP/Getty Images

A boy selects pumpkins to buy at a farm in Calverton, Maryland Photograph: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images

Philippine coastguard workers retrieve a dead 17ft whale shark, which was found by fishermen at the Manila Bay breakwater. The whale shark's cause of death is still unknown. Coastguards said they did not find injuries in their inspection except for a wound on the tail Photograph: Noel Celis/AFP/Getty Images

A flock of budgerigars in Australia. Flooding in 2009 has created ideal breeding conditions and plentiful food supplies for the birds Photograph: Ann Britton/EPA

A species of carder bee hovers over a cosmos flower during the Japan Cup cycle road race Photograph: Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP/Getty Images

A male proboscis monkey finds shelter during a tropical storm. The species is found only on the island of Borneo, where there are estimated to be 3,000 living in the wild Photograph: Mark Baker/AP

A reflection of colourful autumn trees in a river, Prague Photograph: Filip Singer/EPA

A spider near Nasa's Ares I-X rocket at the Kennedy space centre in Cape Canaveral, Florida Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

A starling (Sturnus vulgaris) perched on a wall on the Isle of Sheppey, Kent. Almost 60% of Britain's rarest birds, including once-extinct species such as the bittern, avocet and osprey, have seen their numbers increase over the past decade. Rare birds breeding in Britain have fared better than their more common cousins, with widespread species including starlings, nightingales and cuckoos all in decline Photograph: Jodie Randall/rspb/PA

A sunbird looks for nectar among hanging plants on a balcony. Most sunbirds feed largely on nectar. Fruit and insects are also part of the diet of some species Photograph: Wong Maye-E/AP

Dead fish in a lake at the Palmarsh fishery in Kent. The Environment Agency was called to undertake an investigation after around 500 fish were found dead in the lake. Environment management and fisheries officers deployed aeration equipment to boost oxygen levels to save the remaining fish in the 55-acre lake Photograph: Environment Agency/PA

Geckos seized at Olso airport. Norwegian customs announced that they had arrested a man who tried to illegally import 14 pythons and 10 geckos by taping them to his body Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Indonesian vets tried in vain to save the life of an injured Sumatra tiger. The tiger, who belongs to one of the world's most endangered tiger subspecies, was captured by locals when it entered a village searching for food Photograph: Hotli Simanjuntak/EPA