A 75-year-old photographer captured a perfectly timed photo that shows an eagle flying away with a squealing piglet.
Clarke Espie from Queensland, Australia managed to take the photo after he heard the pig shrieking from the sky. He immediately grabbed his camera and couldn’t believe what he was witnessing.
“I had been invited to capture the unique and diverse birdlife inhabiting these world class wetlands,” Mr. Espie shared.
“Little did I imagine witnessing two massive sea eagles swooping low over my vehicle, one with a feral pig firmly gripped in its powerful talons.
“Despite its powerful wings, the sea eagle struggled to gain altitude before landing its prey upon a small island within the wetlands, where together the eagles shared the prey.”
There are around 24 million feral pigs in Australia and in Queensland, the animals are being regarded as pests as they damage crops, prey on native species, and spread weeds.
White-bellied sea eagles are normally seen flying over water around the Australian coast or high up in trees and they usually pair up. They also mainly live off aquatic animals, like turtles and fish, making Mr. Clarke’s photo even more impressive.
Mr. Espie continued: “I hurriedly snapped these images with a 500mm Telephoto lens as the sea eagles swept past.
“It was one of the most unusual sights I’ve seen. I thought it must’ve been a fish at first but as soon as I focused, I could see it was a piglet. It must have weighed around 5kg. Definitely not something I’ve witnessed before.”
He added: “I’ve seen the imposing white-bellied sea eagle carnivore swoop in a shallow dive to snatch prey in its massive and powerful talons, taking fish, waterbirds, turtles, rabbits, flying foxes etc. before now, but this was something very rarely seen.
“I was astounded.”
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