Amazing picture of acrobat seagull stealing a shrimp dinner - by flying upside down!

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER



Gullible bird: An upside-down seagull steals a shrimp from the mouth of an egret. The moment was caught on film by an amatuer photographer in Florida



This is the incredible moment a seagull showed off some spectacular acrobatics - by flying upside down to steal a shrimp dinner right from the mouth of an egret.

The unassuming egret had spent more than half an hour patiently fishing before finally landing the fish.

But within seconds a cheeky gull swooped upside down and snatched the tasty treat right from its mouth before spinning up right and flying off for a dinner of its own.



Keen photographer Andy Long, 55, captured the extraordinary scene while taking pictures of the wildlife in Fort Desoto Park in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Andy, from Denver, Colorado, said: 'It all happened with about one or two seconds - I've never seen anything like it before especially in such quick motion.

'It flipped upside down and grabbed the shrimp right out of the egrets beak. The momentum of tucking its head downward seemed to swing it back upright in such fluid motion.



1- The approach: The seagull glides unseen from behind as the unsuspecting egret fishes a shrimp from the sea to eat for himself



'The egret just stood there for a minute before going back to hunting - it looked completely stunned at what had just happened.

'A couple of other egrets had caught some shrimp before and a group of three gulls had flown in over them but didn't force any to drop something.

'But after this one made a catch the gull came in and stole it. I've photographed great egret fishing so many times but have never seen this before.'

Anatomy of a mid-air theft



2- Acrobatic stretch: Just as the egret thinks he's about to have a tasty dinner, the seagull suddenly cranes over, extending its neck and grabs the food in its beak



3- The getaway: Now upside down, the seagull has snatched the shrimp away from the egret before swooping off to enjoy the stolen meal



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A bear with a sore head - and an empty belly: Polar bear that fancied snacking on a seagull ends up biting off more than he can chew

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER


Bear bites back: The polar bear surfaces immediately behind the unsuspecting gull and clamps its jaws into the bird's back


This brave seagull heroically took on a polar bear in an epic battle of David v Goliath - and won.

The ten-minute encounter between bird and beast stunned onlookers as the seagull dramatically escaped with its feathers intact.

After the scrap the shame-faced half tonne bear scampered off in search of easier prey to pick a fight with.


Bird fights back: The gull pecks its attacker in the eye in a desperate attempt to get away


Photographer Ole Jorgen Liodden was shocked when he captured the incredible moments on film.

Before the bruising encounter Ole had been happily snapping away at the Glaucous gull as it gently bobbed on the water minding its business.

The polar bear appeared from nowhere and unusually, instead of hunting for its preferred prey of seals, decided to dive into the water and swim up to the bird.


Where's he gone? Temporarily blinded, the bear appears to have lost sight of his quarry


The bear launched a ferocious attack on the gull by biting it on its back and following up with a flurry of blows.

However, this gull was no bird brain and, using its beak, instinctively landed a few hits of its own to the bear's sensitive eyes and nose.

Sensing the bird was not about to become dinner, the bear swum off and the fearless gull was able to make a getaway.


On a wing and a prayer: The seagull managed to fend off the bear for several minutes


On the back foot: The polar bear is on the defensive as the tussling pair move into shallow water


Ole, 37, from Norway, took the photos in the north of the country, in Svalbard.

'This was our second photo expedition to Svalbard and we experienced an incredibly rare situation between a polar bear and a Glaucous gull,' he said.

'The bear suddenly dived and swam a good ten to 15 metres underwater before it attacked the surprised young gull.

'I have never seen anything like this on previous expeditions and the fight was more interesting than I had expected.

'Usually a polar bear can easily kill a 100kg seal, and a gull weighing in at 1.5 kg should be an easy catch.

'After the first bite to the back of the gull, the bear continued its attack in the water.

'The gull fought heroically, and with its bill managed several direct hits to the bear's eyes and nose.

'This made the bear back off and the gull escaped after ten minutes.'



Everything but the gull: Polar bears may be at the top of the food chain, but the only thing this bear got to swallow was its pride

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Firefighters deploy their £500,000 aerial ladder... to rescue a SEAGULL caught up a tree

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Heavens above: Firefighters use an aerial ladder platform to rescue the bird who has been named 'Willy'


A seagull sparked a major rescue operation involving dozens of emergency service workers - after it became trapped 50 feet up a tree.

The bird - who has been dubbed 'Freed Willy' - was spotted in distress by car salesman Steve Candler who called the RSPCA.

But because of the bird's precarious position firefighters had to use their £500,000 aerial ladder platform to get to it.

However, before the rescue could start a busy road had to be closed to traffic so they could rescue 'Willy'.

Salesman Mr Candler said: 'I came in to open up and I could hear this horrible screaming noise, I could tell it was a bird and then I spotted him hanging there from a branch where it had got stuck.

'I was really expecting it to wrench its leg off to get free as there were other birds attacking it.

'The woman from the RSPCA turned up but there was no way of getting a normal ladder up that high. It was as high as a three-storey house so she decided to call in the firefighters.'

A lone officer from Essex Fire and Rescue Service initially came out to the scene in Colchester, Essex, but the decision was made to deploy the aerial ladder platform to get to the bird - something which is normally used to rescue people from burning buildings.



Major operation: Firefighters cordon off the road as the seagull is rescued from the tree


A firefighter was able to free the seagull by cutting down the branch it was trapped on and placing him in a large box.

Mr Candler, 36, said: 'I was quite surprised with the extent of the operation that was put into place, but I was glad that they cared about something so small as I am a bird lover.

'I was surprised at the lengths they went to though. It's certainly very unusual to see a seagull trapped in a tree - I wonder if he had been drinking some Christmas brandy a bit early in the day?

'The main thing is that he got saved and it was a happy ending.'

After the rescue Willy was taken to a nearby animal sanctuary where it was checked over and released.


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Where seagulls dare: Eagle is ambushed for his supper above Norwegian fjord

By Mail Foreign Service

Brave: A sea eagle swoops down in a bid to catch a fish, unaware a plucky seagull is on his tail


This is the moment a brave seagull decided to take on an eagle mid-flight in a battle for fish.

Soaring over the Norwegian fjords the sea eagle was not expecting trouble as it scanned the deep water below for a meal.

With its razor sharp beak and talons the huge bird of prey swooped down for its catch of the day.

However, before it could grab the fish, it was subjected to an astonishing attack by a seagull which landed on its back.


A word in your ear: The seagull briefly touches down on the back of the eagle, preventing it from catching the fish


The daring interception was caught on camera by wildlife photographer Paul Beastall.

In a series of incredible images the gull even seems to ride the back of the surprised eagle in a desperate bid to put him off his catch.

Mr Beastall captured the wildlife confrontation during a trip to the Norwegian fjords, which are also known as sea lakes.

The 38-year-old, from Cambridgeshire, said despite the cheeky seagull's attempt to disrupt dinner the eagle got his fish in the end.

He said: 'The eagle flew off I think more through surprise than anything but the gull didn't get the fish either.

'Happily for the eagle he managed to come back later and get it.

'When I first saw the gull attack I was amazed, I had heard that this does happen but never thought I would capture it on camera.


Success at last: The sea eagle returns for its fish dinner, without accompanying seagull this time
'The sea eagle has a wing span of over eight feet so it's much bigger than the gull and would be more than a match for it.


'But as you can see from these pictures the gull attacks from behind in an ambush to put the eagle off and hopefully get the fish for itself.

'In one shot the gull is right on top of the bird of prey, it's like a real David and Goliath battle, the seagull clearly didn't know the pecking order of things.'

Mr Beastall, who was in Norway leading an expedition to film wildlife, said getting the confrontation on camera was a once-in-a-lifetime event.

He said: 'I have been on photography trips all over the world and a lot in Europe taking pictures of birds, but I've never seen anything like this.

'I have been taking pictures of wildlife for more than 20 years and this is one of the best sights I have seen.'


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