The spectacular sun-drenched vistas of Botswana’s Okavango Delta, majestic elephants and some of the world’s loveliest models grace this year’s Pirelli calendar.

In the past, stars like Penelope Cruz, Naomi Watts and Sophia Loren have posed for the Italian firm in glamorous locations such as Majorca and Saint Tropez.

In 2009, though, the images will feature largely unknown beauties roaming amidst animals in the wild. Typical of an approach intended to show how unspoilt the African landscape can be is the shot of a model leaping out of the lagoon, surrounded by water lilies and an elephant behind her.

Shot by Peter Beard, a photographer who’s lived in Kenya for 30 years and is renowned for his interpretations of the continent, the images celebrate “nature as a metaphysical entity”.