Zoobitva of the year: an epic battle of an eagle and a fox for lunch
Imagine: you are calmly walking home, proudly clutching your well-deserved lunch to your chest, when suddenly some impudent man attacks you, snatches the food and runs away. At the very least, you would probably be angry. Such a situation happened to a poor fox, whose prey in the form of a rabbit was stolen by an impudent eagle. And the epic battle for food was captured by wildlife photographer Kevin Eby.
The bald eagle is a symbol of America, strong and formidable, and also cheeky. He can shamelessly steal food from another, if such an opportunity turns up. Orlan is a true professional in the field of kleptoparasitism. Photographer Kevin Eby caught him doing this.
Kevin was taking photos in San Juan Island National Park in Washington State when he saw a fox carrying a rabbit in its teeth. As soon as Kevin focused on the predator, a bald eagle pounced on the fox and grabbed the rabbit.
The aerial carnage lasted about eight seconds. Then the fox opened its jaws and plopped to the ground from a height of several meters, and the eagle proudly walked away with a rabbit in its beak. Despite the hard landing, the fox did not receive any damage, but simply shook herself off and went to play with her relatives.