Remarkable pictures captured a vicious battle between two grey herons in which one of the giant birds tried to drown its rival.
Harry Spence, a firefighter from Leuchars, Fife, captured the brutal struggle over territory at Eden Estuary Reserve near his home.
Mr Spence, 56, witnessed the birds fighting for three or four minutes until he said one tired so much it nearly drowned.
Harry Spence, a firefighter from Leuchars, Fife captured two herons doing battle at the Eden Estuary Reserve
Pictures show the dominant bird managing to hold its struggling rival almost completely under water by standing on its back
Another of Mr Spence’s photos shows the struggling heron managing briefly to get its head above the water
Pictures then show the apparently lifeless bird lying limp in the water before managing to make its escape
Mr Spence, 56, uploaded the images with the caption: ‘Bit of an argument, thought it was going to drown the other one.’
The majestic and normally serene birds are occasionally glimpsed standing stock still on the riverside waiting to catch fish
Mr Spence uploaded the images with the caption: ‘Bit of an argument, thought it was going to drown the other one.’
The majestic and normally serene birds are occasionally glimpsed standing stock still on the riverside waiting to catch fish.
But Mr Spence, who took the pictures on Wednesday, captured a much more violent side of their nature.
He said: ‘I really thought it was drowned at one point. However, it did regain its composure and accepted defeat and flew off eventually.’
The images show the dominant bird managing to hold its struggling rival almost completely under water by standing on its back.
Another snap shows the struggling heron managing briefly to get its head above the water.
Pictures then show the apparently lifeless bird lying limp in the water before managing to escape.
Clever heron catches a fish using bread as bait (related)