THESE fascinating pictures show the inner anatomical structures of real life animals in all their delicate intricacy.

The specimens, including elephants and giraffes, have been skinned and preserved and go on show at Dr Gunther von Hagens' ANIMAL INSIDE OUT exhibition at the Life Science Centre in Newcastle this weekend (May 28/29).

He is the creator of the renowned Body Worlds exhibition which featured preserved human bodies prepared using a technique called plastination.

Described as an "unforgettable way to learn about animal science", the new exhibition features more than a hundred real animal specimens.

Linda Conlon, Chief Executive of Life, said: "It is an incredible exhibition. Visitors will see some of the world’s most spectacular creatures like never before. Hopefully, they will leave with a deeper understanding and appreciation of the animal kingdom."

Thanks to the science of plastination, invented by anatomist Dr von Hagens, each animal has been painstakingly preserved allowing visitors to see its anatomy in fine detail.

From elephants to eels and octopuses to ostriches, visitors will see the nervous, muscular, circulatory, respiratory, digestive and reproductive systems and be able to compare and contrast them to the human equivalent.

When describing what inspired him to create the exhibition, he said: "The more every individual thinks about the fragility of their own body, the more careful they will treat humans and animals.

"ANIMAL INSIDE OUT therefore makes a valuable contribution to animal welfare and to the increased appreciation of endangered species."

The exhibition also shows how different animals have evolved both in terms of their anatomy and their organ function to fit their natural habitats.

Linda Conlon added: "I've no doubt that visitors will be fascinated. It's not every day you have the chance to see the muscles supporting the neck of the 5m tall giraffe, to stand face to face with a brown bear or to examine the similarities of the adult gorilla to humans."

The exhibition opens on Saturday 28 May and run until Tuesday, January 3. As a guideline, Life suggests the exhibition is of particular interest to those eight and over.