An amateur wildlife photographer captured an eel's attempt to escape from the stomach of a bird that caught it as prey. 58-year-old Sam Davis from Maryland in the United States captured the moment on camera. The photo shows the eel getting out of the stomach of the great blue heron after it was scooped up in the air. While the eel tried its best to save its life, it seems to have died in the end, however, some reports say that the eel successfully escaped from becoming the heron's meal. The photos show the eel bursting from the bird's throat and dangling in the air. Snake eels are a family of eel species which live burrowed in the soft sand on the floor of the ocean. On being caught by the predators, they escape using their tail tip for digging ensuring the animal does not digest them. They can grow up to seven feet or more in length. Sergey Gorshkov Named 2020 Wildlife Photographer Of The Year: 'The Embrace' Rare Photo of Siberian Tigress Hugging Tree Wins the Award (See Picture)

Sam was quoted as saying, "I went to the refuge to photograph foxes and eagles and whatever else may be interesting. There were two young eagles that saw the heron's predicament and were following him around, I assume they sensed a meal. Initially, I thought the heron was bitten on the neck by a snake or eel. When I got home and edited the photos I could see it was an eel that was coming through his neck. I could see his eyes and he was still alive." Incredible! Photograph of Parakeets Returning Home at Sunset Looks Like Thousands of Them Flying Together, Check Viral Pic of Bird Trail.

Snake Eel Escapes From Herons' Stomach:

Sam, who shares his photos to nature fans on his Instagram (@22smd) further said "The wildlife refuge said they have never seen anything like that before. It is kind of a morbid photo. There was also a fox who sensed that there was an animal in distress. He followed the heron also and kept an eye on the eagles."

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 07, 2020 01:38 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).