Nombekana’s safari guide, Rodney recently witnessed a showdown between a heron, a stork, a fish eagle and a croc, which contended for a single fish in the Kruger National Park.
The absurdity of the showdown held Rodney and guests to the reserve’s full attention.
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A catch that seemed like any other
Rodney explained that he and visitors to the reserve had decided to park off near a waterhole to watch animals as they came to drink.
He said he and his guests had enjoyed many incredible sightings in the park during their stay. However, nothing could have prepared them for this unusual showdown.
“I decided to visit one of my favorite spots in the park – not expecting anything radical really. Suddenly a goliath heron caught a fish and what happened next was nothing short of incredible. Luckily, I was recording the whole time.”
A heron had caught a fish and was enjoying the fish quite peacefully, near to the shore by the waterhole. This was when an unexpected rival swooped in.
A mighty eagle arrives
Eagle’s are known for their sharp vision and their ability to detect pray, even while gliding high in the air, and this one saw the fish and came with speed to take the meal from the heron.
The heron, however, wasn’t about to entertain such a theft of its catch lying down. The bird put up an applaudable fight.
Rodney and his crew had the opportunity to witness a fish eagle as few do, hovering above the water, and leveraging itself on mighty wings. It put on a breathtaking display; with the heron using its wings and long beak to intimidate and to hold its ground.
“Before we knew it, a fish eagle challenged the heron for the fish. I still get goosebumps thinking about it. While these two birds argue about who’s getting the food, a saddle-billed stork joined the scene and gets away with the fish.”
Eventually, the heron backed off away from the eagle, which stayed still as the long-legged bird walked away from the prey.
New players arrive on the scene
This was when some saddle-billed storks entered the scene. A crafty saddle-billed stork walked confidently to the fish, and swiped it up with its beak.
The poor heron not only lost its meal, but had to stay alert as new danger arrived on the scene… a sneaky crocodile, which was possibly eyeing the birds and the fish!
The stork seemed nonchalant as it ate the fish, unaware that just a little way away was a big croc.
“While trying to make smaller sushi pieces from the fish, two crocodiles tried to move closer to the stork, but it managed to get away with its stolen meal.”
Says Rodney of the sighting: “You always hope for a cat action-packed sighting and hardly ever think about birds fighting.”
While nature can be predictable in some ways, it is full of surprises and it’s exciting moments like these which remind game viewers of the reason why you can never see everything there is to see in the wild! There’s always more to be seen!