Stingray Writhes In Terror In Seal Attack

Seals have had a hard time of it over the years. Yes, they might feast on fish - and even the odd penguin - but they also live a life of constant danger.

Preyed upon by orcas, great white sharks and polar bears, the seal's life is a tricky one. And that's before you mention humans, who have harvested them for their skin for years, and continue to eat their meat, organs and blubber in many parts of the world.

But sometimes, the catch becomes the catcher, like this badass bull seal.

Check out these pics by David Hurwitz, captured in Cape Town South Africa, in February. The 61-year-old said he noticed something strange occurring in the water and thought it might be a shark eating the seal.

StoryTrender

After running towards the spot, Hurwitz noticed that it was in fact a bull seal eating a massive stingray.

After beating the stingray in a game of 'whoever loses this dies', the seal then had to keep his food from greedy seabirds who were hanging about looking for a free meal.

David said: "Whilst heading across the bay, I noticed a huge commotion in the water about one nautical mile from my vessel. My first thought was a Great White shark predating on a seal.

StoryTrender

"I approached at speed and on arrival saw that a (bull) seal was taking on a stingray that appeared far larger than he could manage.

"It was remarkable in that, although the seal was sub-adult, he was obviously very experienced in dealing with large Elasmobranchii and knew that by inverting them, it would induce a hypnotic state (tonic immobility), rendering his prey defenceless.

"Once he had started on the best bits - the wings - it was not long before the Skuas arrived and tried to rob him of his meal."

StoryTrender

Hurwitz concluded: "[The seal] would have none of it and the next 20 minutes proved most entertaining, watching the seal barking and lunging at the birds to ensure that he didn't have to share the tiniest of morsel with these thieving scavengers. There's never a day at sea when you won't encounter something new and exciting that will blow you away."

I bet there is, but I can agree with him that dealing with large elasmobranchii is really difficult.

As for the stingray... well, things didn't turn out so well (it got eaten).

The lesson?

Don't mess with seals.

Topics: Wildlife, Animals

Ronan O'Shea

Ronan J O'Shea is a freelance journalist from London who has written for titles including LADbible, Headspace, The Independent, National Geographic Traveller and New York Post. Contact him at [email protected].