Great Crested Grebe by Suzy Bristow

Recently, Suzy Bristow has been sharing a selection of images in the BirdGuides gallery that bring a smile to the face. Capturing aquatic birds underwater is no easy task, for it requires clear water, the right angle and close birds, but evidently Suzy's local Hertfordshire reservoirs offer the right conditions to attempt such images. While such photos might not be to everyone's taste, Suzy certainly knows how to produce a striking photo in such conditions, and her latest offering – this Great Crested Grebe re-emerging post-dive – caught our eye.

Suzy has timed this one brilliantly, just as the head appears, while the rest of the body – including those spectacularly large 'flippers' for feet – are clearly still visible below the surface. We imagine that it must've taken Suzy a while to nail this image, so well done to her on being patient enough to produce a quirky and original image that makes for a worthy POTW winner.

Other notable images

Greater Flamingo, Marano Lagunare, Friuli-Venezia Giulia (Raffaele Cargnelutti).

Manx Shearwater, Lower Bayble, Lewis, Outer Hebrides (Joy Marshall).

Yelkouan Shearwater, at sea, Malta (Natalino Fenech).

Scopoli's Shearwater, at sea, Malta (Natalino Fenech).

Eurasian Spoonbill, Campfield Marsh RSPB, Cumbria (Sam Northwood).

Mute Swan, Wilstone Reservoir, Hertfordshire (Suzy Bristow).

Common Snipe, Blacktoft Sands RSPB, East Yorkshire (Ian Bollen).

Pectoral Sandpiper, Wedholme Flow, Cumbria (Sam Northwood).

Caspian Tern, Slimbridge WWT, Gloucestershire (Mike Trew).

Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Marshside, Lancashire (Susan H. Wilson).

European Honey Buzzard, Wykeham Forest, North Yorkshire (Paul Bateson).

Turkey Vulture, Los Angeles, California (Alexander Viduetsky).

Greenfinch, Portsmouth, Hampshire (Chris Blake).