Amateur photographer Martin Le-May, from Essex, has recorded the extraordinary image of a weasel riding on the back of a green woodpecker as it flies through the air.
The photograph was taken at Hornchurch Country Park in east London on Monday afternoon.
Speaking to BBC News, Mr Le-May said he had managed to capture the moment while he was out walking with his wife Ann.
He said: "I heard a distressed squawking noise and feared the worst.
"I soon realised it was a woodpecker with some kind of small mammal on its back.
"I think we may have distracted the weasel as when the woodpecker landed it managed to escape and the weasel ran into the grass."
Mr Le-May said he was astounded by the reaction to the picture on social media.
The wildlife shot has been retweeted several thousand times.
He said; "I'm so proud so many people are getting to see my image. I'm totally taken aback by the response to it."
'Ferocious as a lion'
Wildlife expert Lucy Cooke told the BBC News Channel: "This is a truly extraordinary image.
"The green woodpecker is a ground-feeding bird, but weasels normally attack rabbits. The woodpecker is not its usual prey.
"But weasels are fearless.
"A female weasel weighs less than a Mars Bar but is as ferocious as a lion, so this is why the woodpecker would have been able to take off with it on its back."
He said; "I'm so proud so many people are getting to see my image. I'm totally taken aback by the response to it."
'Ferocious as a lion'
Wildlife expert Lucy Cooke told the BBC News Channel: "This is a truly extraordinary image.
"The green woodpecker is a ground-feeding bird, but weasels normally attack rabbits. The woodpecker is not its usual prey.
"But weasels are fearless.
"A female weasel weighs less than a Mars Bar but is as ferocious as a lion, so this is why the woodpecker would have been able to take off with it on its back."
Recent Posts
Another Bangladeshi blogger hacked to death
A masked gang wielding machetes has hacked a blogger to death in northeastern Bangladesh in the t[...]
May 12, 2015Four suspects in the Lekki bank robbery apprehended by the police
Four suspects involved in the deadly Lekki Phase bank robbery in March which resulted in the deat[...]
May 12, 2015Remembering Bob Marley, the King of Reggae
Robert Nesta "Bob" Marley OM (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981) was a Jamaican reggae singer, songwr[...]
May 12, 2015Japanese porn industry hit by shortage of men. 70 men to 10,000 women
Japanese $20billion porn industry is under threat as their men have refused to participate. Accor[...]
May 11, 2015First son of Nnamdi Azikiwe, Chukwuma dies at 75
The first son of first Nigerian Head of State, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Chief Bamidele Azikiwe has died at[...]
May 11, 2015Family and church members of Pastor held by the NDLEA for drug trafficking disappear
The family and church members of the 43-year-old pastor, who was arrested by operatives of the [...]
May 11, 2015
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Amazing things happens in the world we live in...
ReplyDeleteWhat you don't know is your senior ....
Extraordinary indeed..
ReplyDelete