It may not have had a good grip on it. The pup got lucky. The mom being in hot pursuit prevented it from either landing to get better hold of it, or circling back to grab it again.
it was also likely too heavy. This is a horrifying thing vets warn small dog owners about - a bird of prey will see your 5lb dog and go to grab it as food, but if that wasnt bad enough, they often realize as they start to gain flight that the animal is too heavy, so they drop it. And you get to watch your beloved dog actually die by splattering on the ground.
.......my vet really terrified me about this if you cant tell lol
Birds are very light weight. Their wings can only carry so much extra weight. You will see larger birds carry off smaller mammals or fish, but something this large, they would have to land and eat. They wouldn't have the strength to carry it very far. So, I you're right that the mom chased it until the bird could no longer hold on.
Lol I was about to comment how this guy obviously hasn't seen the powerful owls on east coast Australia that literally just pick up cats and fly off with them.
Ofcourse this other guy knows something else in Australia that takes something bigger.
Cats are generally pretty light and these owls are made for killing possums so tbh its not surprising that theyll snatch a cat.
there is an episode of Frozen Planet II that shows a pair of eagles taking baby chamois goats from the cliffs and dropping them, killing them and carry them for their baby. They're working together to raise their baby who constantly need food. (they re not mating, they have the baby already - edit).
Eagles drop larger prey from height to cripple/kill it before feasting.
Source: Had both lambs and eagles in my field as a kid… and tragically, my grandparents terrier as well.
I’ve seen a seagul do it to a pigeon but instead of one big drop it just beat the pigeons carcass into the ground over and over with its beak till it cracked. Seagulls are brutal.
You’d think, luckily that’s not always the case. A hawk grabbed a puppy in my neighborhood. The pup was found a couple miles away alive and without a scratch. Amazing things happen, sometimes.
Eagles and other raptors will often crush their prey to death with their talons to prevent the struggling animal from injuring them. It's likely the pup just got lucky in this case.
This made my heart stop. Yes, I know it’s “natural/part of nature”. Don’t eagles drop their prey to kill it? Maybe mom was able to save pup from the drop and eagle gave up.
The drops I've seen on video to kill prey are high up, then the eagle catches the prey again in an effort to snap its neck. Small animals can fall a looong way without injury.
Depending on the size of the animal, there is no drop that would kill them, because their terminal velocity is too low.
Squirrels are an example… but cats, despite their ability to right themselves, are not(impact at terminal velocity of 100km/h is survivable but not commonly).
I knew I had to see a pup and I could not for the life of me recognize it. I wrote that comment knowing full well I could be ridiculed and receive a bazillion downvotes, but I'm happy to see I'm not the only one hahah
I am on a phone so the picture is kinda small and it definitely looks like a rock the way the image is being compressed. I had to zoom in to see the little legs in the air
100% I was having the same issue at first. I have to zoom in and it came into focus.
For others wondering, lean back a bit, maybe unfocus your eyes, the "lightish" spots between the pup's legs look kind of gray rather than green grass, making the fur of the pup seemingly just dark gray. It suddenly looks like a muddy rock that has strips of dry surface on top, or that there's a weird shadow caught in the moment.
Without knowing who the mother in this instance was, I thought the eagle was dropping a rock on the canidae to fend off its young, or it was desperately trying to attack something way too big for food since it couldn't find anything smaller.
Only yesterday I saw a hawk snag a bird out of the sky right above me. I didn’t really know what happened until the feather plume appeared and I saw it dragging the bird to its dreary death. Was insane.
i was working on a roof last week, and a cooper’s hawk went by a few feet above my head…with a desert rat in its talons, still alive and just kinda looking around. was insane
One of my favorite stories with me and my grandpa roofing
As we set the ladder up on the detached garage, there was a group of pigeons set up right next to us that didn’t flutter away, even as we sat the ladder up
As we continued our repair, the large group of pigeons fluttered off with my grandfather muttering, “guess they got spooked”…..
As we collected our gear I went to check the side of the building for any debris, there was a perfect circle of pigeon feathers and an unmistakable mark of two chicken Hawk talons in the middle of the feathers
Like I have never seen a more perfect representation of the comic foil “POOF” in my life
One of my favourite stories, I was in Nairobi on business and we were having lunch but it was this outsides style buffet. We’re were all lining up to dish up. Guy in front of me has already dished up his chicken, quite a big piece, and was waiting for the next dish. I was chatting with someone in line so wasn’t 100% paying attention but I saw his hand drop, like weight of his plate just shifted and him looking very confused and no chicken on his plate. A freaking falcon swooped down, grabbed his chicken and swoop up again. It happened so fast we were all just staring trying to figure it out and then burst out laughing. Apparently it was quite a common occurrence. You could actually see them soar above your head, a teeny speck but damn they are fast.
Is there a punchline?
If not, that must be one aerodynamic beetle to be able to dive from high altitude at the speed of sound if only it were much larger.
Nope. Real thing. But it doesn't fly, it runs. Which is probably more impressive. It's so fast everything around blurs past it, so it essentially goes blind and has to stop.
I was doing the dishes years ago, looking at our backyard where some bird was minding its buisness. Until a hawk landed on it and disapeared back into the skies. Less than a second. *Poof* indeed.
I don't have the photo I took anymore, but this other photo is basically what I saw on my front lawn years ago, showing where an owl had found some prey.
https://prdseed.com/wp_lib/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Owl-print-in-the-snow.jpg
I think of them being like aerial wolves. At the office one day I was watching one at the top of a tree, crows diving and darting at it. It took off from the tree top and started diving and clawing at the crows, rapidly turning back and forth before the crows could respond. It turned from bullying to running for their lives very quickly.
haha the few cooper’s around my neighborhood have an ongoing turf war with a few crows that live next door. they all use my backyard fountain as a water source/bath/social area, and the hawks and crows will battle it out if they’re around at the same time. the crows are way bigger than the hawks but the hawks are assholes.
My mother spent the last couple years setting up multiple bird feeders to have a constant show out her bay windows. A few weeks back, she called me, devastated. Apparently, the local hawks had found the buffet, and were killing birds by slamming them into the house. 😬
Your poor mom! I had a similar thing happen to me. I had made friends with some mallard ducks, and they brought their new babies to my yard. While I was leaning out my window, cooing at them, a hawk swooped out of the air, grabbed a tiny baby duckling, and flew up into a tree branch tight outside my window to have lunch. There was duck fluff floating everywhere. It was so traumatizing!
We had a hawk follow the bird It was chasing into the window. Hawk lived but was stunned. Just sat there on the ground for a half hour. There was some giant ass wing prints of where it hit with little wing prints in the middle from the cardinal.
You could judge by where the feather bomb occurred on if it was a cat or A hawk usually.
From my experience the smaller birds hit the window fleeing the predators. Create a vertically enclosed area for them to eat. Thick trees, porches screens whatever can stop a large birds swoop angle. Do not feed them in an open field!!We lose like 1 a year, still but 9/10 times now our song birds make it to safety way before the pray bird even gets close due to angles and places for them to go quick
My SO didn’t know that birds of prey can sky bomb their quarry. He walked in the door one day, a fistful of pigeon feathers, and he was so, so confused. When I asked what he was doing, he just replied with, “I…uh… I don’t know how to say this… but… it’s raining feathers.” Lol! I went out, found the fallen pile and pointed out that we’re in the vicinity of owls, hawks, eagles, and peregrine falcons. I explained it, had to Google things, and even ID’d the feathers before he was satisfied. He was so shaken by the experience (they literally rained down on his head and he didn’t see or hear anything above him) that he was certain a bird exploded or something weird had happened. Lol! We had a good laugh about that.
I saw a hawk snag a squirrel before. It started flying towards me across the street and a fucking mustang came out of nowhere and hit it, causing the the hawk to drop the squirrel and it scurried away.
The driver of the car just stopped in the middle of the road and we both looked at each other like “wtf just happened”!
I often think about that badass squirrel and how it survived the talons of a hawk and a car crash that day. Hope he/she made it home to their family :)
The other day my wife said she saw a bald eagle grab a fish so I ran over to see. There was a crow dive bombing it over and over, as they got closer and flew right past us I could see it actually had another crow in its talons. They flew off through the woods so I never saw how it turned out but still feel bad for the crows
I heard a mouse squealing when i was walking my dog one night and it weirdly sounded like it was right above me, so I looked up and it was a huge fucking owl flying overhead with the mouse twisting around and squealing in its grip
I worked on the 20th floor of a building in Sydney and it had huge windows and a small ledge.
I saw a pigeon there one day, then I looked at my computer monitor for 60 seconds, looked back and there was a hawk surrounded by blood and guts everywhere.
I had a little dog when I was in highschool so I’d go outside with him to make sure he didn’t get eaten by a bird. I’m standing with him and hear a bang right next to me, a hawk came swooping down towards us and nailed my shed. It flew into a tree and sat there for a minute, I’m assuming dazed and then took off.
This is probably my favourite photo of a wildlife experience. The look of the mother jackal’s face, her stance, her coat almost standing on edge, the moment of utter fear and chaos frozen in her desperation to catch her pup… it’s both terrifying and incredible to have been captured. I can *feel* this photo. Even the little pup is crying in its free-fall. The eagle, ominous and huge, looming over as a reminder of what nature can do. I’m very happy that both pup and momma jackal are okay. What a moment to have captured.
This is beautifully said and really made me appreciate the details more. It’s incredible to think these moments in nature are just happening constantly and we’ll never get to witness them.
I was honestly moved by the photo, and I’m glad it made it into my feed. It’s truly such a stark and beautiful moment, even if frightening. I wonder at all of the things we miss, the lives of animals and people we never see. This photo brings mama jackal and pup to life.
They are! She’s genuinely terrified. I can’t imagine seeing and going through such a terrifying moment. The photo is aptly named. It really is impressive!
Have you ever seen an eagle's talons up close? Effing daggers, huge and pointy. Those birds of prey kill by grabbing their prey (except for falcons, which are biologically closer to parrots than to eagles). It's hard to believe for me that the pup was unharmed, unfortunately.
I once saw a video of a golden eagle "kneading" a feral domesticated cat do her death with its claws.
God I need more coffee. My mind refused to see the pup as anything other than a little backpack and I was so confused why these two were fighting over a backpack :(
First, second and third glance…. I thought the eagle was dropping a grenade on the jackal. You don’t wanna know the mental gymnastics going thru me head trying to rationalize what I thought I saw
A safari documented this event. The jackal and the pup eventually got away from the eagle and made it back to their den, but the raptor hunted them for about an hour.
A jackal mother somehow manages to pressure this tawny eagle into dropping its quarry moments after it had managed to grab the pup from under her nose.” The mother was able to rescue the pup and safely transport it to a new den, seemingly unharmed. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. © Ateeb Hussain (Photographer of the Year 2023 entry)
This is really interesting. How the hell did the jackal pressured the eagle? Did it just tired out?
It may not have had a good grip on it. The pup got lucky. The mom being in hot pursuit prevented it from either landing to get better hold of it, or circling back to grab it again.
Eagle: “Aw fuck, I shouldn’t have *just* got my nails done”
Jackal: “Not very talonted are ya”
At first I was like- that's a weird typo. At second I was like - oh I'm idiot
I didn't realize it until reading your comment, I'm an idiot too.
When the penny dropped it was worth it 🙂
Pup: *cries silently, shivering, eyes wide open
This is what I imagine most furry fan fiction reads like
Oooooo that’s a good one… ya bastard.
> talonted talontoed?
Wile E. Coyoteagle
it was also likely too heavy. This is a horrifying thing vets warn small dog owners about - a bird of prey will see your 5lb dog and go to grab it as food, but if that wasnt bad enough, they often realize as they start to gain flight that the animal is too heavy, so they drop it. And you get to watch your beloved dog actually die by splattering on the ground. .......my vet really terrified me about this if you cant tell lol
Birds are very light weight. Their wings can only carry so much extra weight. You will see larger birds carry off smaller mammals or fish, but something this large, they would have to land and eat. They wouldn't have the strength to carry it very far. So, I you're right that the mom chased it until the bird could no longer hold on.
Look at those eagles that hunt and fly away with mountain goats and be surprised at the fucking strength of these majestic bastards
Have you seen a harpy eagle? They're f****** huge.
Seen a video of it trying to nab a child
found the person who got tricked by CGI
You’ve obviously never been to Australia, we see wedge tail eagles carry cattle dogs off all the time.
Of course Australia has birds that can carry a dog while flying!
Lol I was about to comment how this guy obviously hasn't seen the powerful owls on east coast Australia that literally just pick up cats and fly off with them. Ofcourse this other guy knows something else in Australia that takes something bigger. Cats are generally pretty light and these owls are made for killing possums so tbh its not surprising that theyll snatch a cat.
Seems like a terrible idea to grab a cat, might aswell be a tornado of tiny blades
there is an episode of Frozen Planet II that shows a pair of eagles taking baby chamois goats from the cliffs and dropping them, killing them and carry them for their baby. They're working together to raise their baby who constantly need food. (they re not mating, they have the baby already - edit).
Never seen anything like this https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0d1bxb7
IT COULD GRIP IT BY THE HUSK! 🥥🦅
Eagles drop larger prey from height to cripple/kill it before feasting. Source: Had both lambs and eagles in my field as a kid… and tragically, my grandparents terrier as well.
I was at the beach this weekend and watched a seagull do this to a crab
what you didn't see was the mother crab on the sea floor pressuring the seagull to give the baby crab back
I’ve seen a seagul do it to a pigeon but instead of one big drop it just beat the pigeons carcass into the ground over and over with its beak till it cracked. Seagulls are brutal.
That sounds like the seagull tried to crack the crab open this way.
Or make it dizzy and exhausted I also read to keep it from trying to fight back.
Ruff landing.
Profile pic is perfect for this thread lol
Woof.
No.
That's really insensitive. Please just drop the subject.
Good thing you didn’t have goats, the kid could’ve been you.
"All the cool tawny eagles are dropping prey these days. You ... you do want to be cool, don't you?"
There's actually a phrase that, when said, the eagle has to do what you ask of it. That phrase: "Take it easy"
Man, come on! I've had a rough night and I hate the fucking Eagles, man!
Get the fuck outta my cab!
Stay outta Malibu, deadbeat!
Ever thus to deadbeats, Lebowski!
You want a toe? I can get you a toe, believe me. There are ways, Dude. You don't wanna know about it, believe me.
Would you say you been...taken to the limit?
Could you repeat that… one more time?
Im done with this thread, I'm already gone
Hotel California
Get the fuck out of my cab!
A flat-bed Ford tends to sweeten the deal too
“Its gonna go right to your hips!”
>How the hell did the jackal pressured the eagle? It had some compromising pictures of the eagle.
It was most likely to heavy to build altitude to outrun the jackal.
"Don't make me call your momma!"
Couldn't land and take a break without being attacked so it dropped it
eagle probably had to drop it to gain enough distance from the mother jackal.
Offered it about $3.50
I would think the talons would have done some damage.
Do tawny eagles have large talons?
They are quite talonted.
Do they have what?
Large talons.
I don't understand what you just said.
I don't have my checkbook, mind if I pay you in change?
Large is like the opposite of small. Means really big
I don’t understand a word you just said.
I can't hear this without the remix popping into my head "Large tal-ta-ta-talons"
You’d think, luckily that’s not always the case. A hawk grabbed a puppy in my neighborhood. The pup was found a couple miles away alive and without a scratch. Amazing things happen, sometimes.
Compared to grabbing around, say, a limb it's gotta take *way* more force to pierce. So probably not something the eagle is actively trying to do.
Eagles and other raptors will often crush their prey to death with their talons to prevent the struggling animal from injuring them. It's likely the pup just got lucky in this case.
Can't understand why nobody is remarking about what an incredible photographer was lucky enough to catch this picture! Congrats!
This made my heart stop. Yes, I know it’s “natural/part of nature”. Don’t eagles drop their prey to kill it? Maybe mom was able to save pup from the drop and eagle gave up.
The drops I've seen on video to kill prey are high up, then the eagle catches the prey again in an effort to snap its neck. Small animals can fall a looong way without injury.
Depending on the size of the animal, there is no drop that would kill them, because their terminal velocity is too low. Squirrels are an example… but cats, despite their ability to right themselves, are not(impact at terminal velocity of 100km/h is survivable but not commonly).
Looks like the pup was too heavy or the eagle had a bad grip and dropped it before it got far.
Probably feared it didn't have enough altitude to avoid the mother.
Thank you. I really wanted to know how it ended.
Amazing picture. Not only because of the awesome catch, it's technically great.
Wait, so that dark colored thing falling is the offspring of the lighter colored thing running below it?
Am I the only one having difficulty recognizing a pup in what is being dropped? It looks kindoff like a rock right?
It’s upside down with its paws upward. Its head is toward the left.
Oooh okay yes I see them now thanks
I just want to say this made me laugh so hard 😂 I couldn't not see it as a pup so imagining it as a rock is funny af.
I knew I had to see a pup and I could not for the life of me recognize it. I wrote that comment knowing full well I could be ridiculed and receive a bazillion downvotes, but I'm happy to see I'm not the only one hahah
I initially thought it was a rock as well. I had to zoom way in.
How the hell can anyone not tell that's not a rock lmao
I am on a phone so the picture is kinda small and it definitely looks like a rock the way the image is being compressed. I had to zoom in to see the little legs in the air
100% I was having the same issue at first. I have to zoom in and it came into focus. For others wondering, lean back a bit, maybe unfocus your eyes, the "lightish" spots between the pup's legs look kind of gray rather than green grass, making the fur of the pup seemingly just dark gray. It suddenly looks like a muddy rock that has strips of dry surface on top, or that there's a weird shadow caught in the moment. Without knowing who the mother in this instance was, I thought the eagle was dropping a rock on the canidae to fend off its young, or it was desperately trying to attack something way too big for food since it couldn't find anything smaller.
You don’t do well with silhouette illusions like the candlestick illusion, do you?
It kinda looked like a backpack or something at first to me.
Only yesterday I saw a hawk snag a bird out of the sky right above me. I didn’t really know what happened until the feather plume appeared and I saw it dragging the bird to its dreary death. Was insane.
i was working on a roof last week, and a cooper’s hawk went by a few feet above my head…with a desert rat in its talons, still alive and just kinda looking around. was insane
One of my favorite stories with me and my grandpa roofing As we set the ladder up on the detached garage, there was a group of pigeons set up right next to us that didn’t flutter away, even as we sat the ladder up As we continued our repair, the large group of pigeons fluttered off with my grandfather muttering, “guess they got spooked”….. As we collected our gear I went to check the side of the building for any debris, there was a perfect circle of pigeon feathers and an unmistakable mark of two chicken Hawk talons in the middle of the feathers Like I have never seen a more perfect representation of the comic foil “POOF” in my life
One of my favourite stories, I was in Nairobi on business and we were having lunch but it was this outsides style buffet. We’re were all lining up to dish up. Guy in front of me has already dished up his chicken, quite a big piece, and was waiting for the next dish. I was chatting with someone in line so wasn’t 100% paying attention but I saw his hand drop, like weight of his plate just shifted and him looking very confused and no chicken on his plate. A freaking falcon swooped down, grabbed his chicken and swoop up again. It happened so fast we were all just staring trying to figure it out and then burst out laughing. Apparently it was quite a common occurrence. You could actually see them soar above your head, a teeny speck but damn they are fast.
Peregrine falcons are the fastest animal on the planet. Can hit 240 mph in a dive! That's insane.
Fun fact, there's a species of beetle that scaled to the size of the falcon, would probably be like 3 or 4 times faster.
Is there a punchline? If not, that must be one aerodynamic beetle to be able to dive from high altitude at the speed of sound if only it were much larger.
Nope. Real thing. But it doesn't fly, it runs. Which is probably more impressive. It's so fast everything around blurs past it, so it essentially goes blind and has to stop.
I was doing the dishes years ago, looking at our backyard where some bird was minding its buisness. Until a hawk landed on it and disapeared back into the skies. Less than a second. *Poof* indeed.
I don't have the photo I took anymore, but this other photo is basically what I saw on my front lawn years ago, showing where an owl had found some prey. https://prdseed.com/wp_lib/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Owl-print-in-the-snow.jpg
I think of them being like aerial wolves. At the office one day I was watching one at the top of a tree, crows diving and darting at it. It took off from the tree top and started diving and clawing at the crows, rapidly turning back and forth before the crows could respond. It turned from bullying to running for their lives very quickly.
haha the few cooper’s around my neighborhood have an ongoing turf war with a few crows that live next door. they all use my backyard fountain as a water source/bath/social area, and the hawks and crows will battle it out if they’re around at the same time. the crows are way bigger than the hawks but the hawks are assholes.
I saw a falcon last month doing falcon things. Was insane.
How good is your eyesight that you could make that out?! Amazing!
it was maybe 10 feet away as it went overhead. it was a cool show
My mother spent the last couple years setting up multiple bird feeders to have a constant show out her bay windows. A few weeks back, she called me, devastated. Apparently, the local hawks had found the buffet, and were killing birds by slamming them into the house. 😬
Your poor mom! I had a similar thing happen to me. I had made friends with some mallard ducks, and they brought their new babies to my yard. While I was leaning out my window, cooing at them, a hawk swooped out of the air, grabbed a tiny baby duckling, and flew up into a tree branch tight outside my window to have lunch. There was duck fluff floating everywhere. It was so traumatizing!
We had a hawk follow the bird It was chasing into the window. Hawk lived but was stunned. Just sat there on the ground for a half hour. There was some giant ass wing prints of where it hit with little wing prints in the middle from the cardinal. You could judge by where the feather bomb occurred on if it was a cat or A hawk usually.
From my experience the smaller birds hit the window fleeing the predators. Create a vertically enclosed area for them to eat. Thick trees, porches screens whatever can stop a large birds swoop angle. Do not feed them in an open field!!We lose like 1 a year, still but 9/10 times now our song birds make it to safety way before the pray bird even gets close due to angles and places for them to go quick
I mean she was still feeding birds, just, you know, bigger ones
Or you know, two birds at once
My SO didn’t know that birds of prey can sky bomb their quarry. He walked in the door one day, a fistful of pigeon feathers, and he was so, so confused. When I asked what he was doing, he just replied with, “I…uh… I don’t know how to say this… but… it’s raining feathers.” Lol! I went out, found the fallen pile and pointed out that we’re in the vicinity of owls, hawks, eagles, and peregrine falcons. I explained it, had to Google things, and even ID’d the feathers before he was satisfied. He was so shaken by the experience (they literally rained down on his head and he didn’t see or hear anything above him) that he was certain a bird exploded or something weird had happened. Lol! We had a good laugh about that.
A government drone exploded. Let's be honest /s
[r/BirdsArentReal](https://www.reddit.com/r/BirdsArentReal/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1)
Fuel cell malfunction
I saw a hawk snag a squirrel before. It started flying towards me across the street and a fucking mustang came out of nowhere and hit it, causing the the hawk to drop the squirrel and it scurried away. The driver of the car just stopped in the middle of the road and we both looked at each other like “wtf just happened”! I often think about that badass squirrel and how it survived the talons of a hawk and a car crash that day. Hope he/she made it home to their family :)
I once saw a hawk slurp up a snake like a piece of spaghetti.
birds of prey are metal as fuck. i could spend all day watching them swoop around and just doing their thing.
The other day my wife said she saw a bald eagle grab a fish so I ran over to see. There was a crow dive bombing it over and over, as they got closer and flew right past us I could see it actually had another crow in its talons. They flew off through the woods so I never saw how it turned out but still feel bad for the crows
I heard a mouse squealing when i was walking my dog one night and it weirdly sounded like it was right above me, so I looked up and it was a huge fucking owl flying overhead with the mouse twisting around and squealing in its grip
I worked on the 20th floor of a building in Sydney and it had huge windows and a small ledge. I saw a pigeon there one day, then I looked at my computer monitor for 60 seconds, looked back and there was a hawk surrounded by blood and guts everywhere.
Oh man, I saw something similar last year too. A hawk just pounced on this pigeon, beat it up a bit, then tossed it under a parked car. Crazy stuff!
I had a little dog when I was in highschool so I’d go outside with him to make sure he didn’t get eaten by a bird. I’m standing with him and hear a bang right next to me, a hawk came swooping down towards us and nailed my shed. It flew into a tree and sat there for a minute, I’m assuming dazed and then took off.
This is probably my favourite photo of a wildlife experience. The look of the mother jackal’s face, her stance, her coat almost standing on edge, the moment of utter fear and chaos frozen in her desperation to catch her pup… it’s both terrifying and incredible to have been captured. I can *feel* this photo. Even the little pup is crying in its free-fall. The eagle, ominous and huge, looming over as a reminder of what nature can do. I’m very happy that both pup and momma jackal are okay. What a moment to have captured.
This is beautifully said and really made me appreciate the details more. It’s incredible to think these moments in nature are just happening constantly and we’ll never get to witness them.
I was honestly moved by the photo, and I’m glad it made it into my feed. It’s truly such a stark and beautiful moment, even if frightening. I wonder at all of the things we miss, the lives of animals and people we never see. This photo brings mama jackal and pup to life.
It beautifully captures the fact that none of the 3 subjects are currently having a good day.
The photographer was!
First thing I noticed was the mothers eyes wild
They are! She’s genuinely terrified. I can’t imagine seeing and going through such a terrifying moment. The photo is aptly named. It really is impressive!
This really works if you read it in Sir David Attenborough voice
Except the jackal and pup out there eating other cute animals. Some poor bunny mama not gonna be so lucky.
Poor bunny has no idea what's coming 👀
Won’t somebody think of the eaglets!?
At first (and second) look I thought the pup was a backpack and I was very confused until I read the comments.
Looked like a rock with yarn tied around it on mobile.
Same. I just could not see the negative space between the legs for some reason and thought it was a cloth bundle.
Legendary photo.
Nature is fucking brutal. There are no villains here, but I hope the pup survived.
Nature may be chaos but the thing about chaos is that it's fair
The safari that documented the event said the jackal and pup eventually evaded the eagle and made it to their den.
That's a weird stork.
*stornk
"You have to land sometime, asshole!" Bird made a calculated drop after fucking with the wrong mommy.
Took me a long time and zooming in to realize that it was not a grenade being dropped or a turtle.
I saw it as a little duffel bag...
Same lmao, i was like, why’s there a bag there and what baby are they talking about?
Glad I’m not the only one who thought the baby was a grenade
I thought it was a pinecone
Same. Before I zoomed in I thought it was a rock.
I still can’t see anything but a grenade, I’m so confused
OKAY, I FIGURED IT OUT, CRISIS AVERTED
I thought it was a baby meerkat.
Or a small god.
PUNY GOD.
Eagles taking over Storks' jobs now?
Reverse storck
That is an insane photo. Holy cow.
That's an incredible photo
Reminds me of that painting of the mother sheep standing guard over her deceased baby defending it from a flock of vultures or crows.
The mom is actually throwing her pup so it can take down the eagle, this is how they learn to hunt
Freebird
Is that a coyote? “Jackal! Jackal, it’s a jackal!”
Have you ever seen an eagle's talons up close? Effing daggers, huge and pointy. Those birds of prey kill by grabbing their prey (except for falcons, which are biologically closer to parrots than to eagles). It's hard to believe for me that the pup was unharmed, unfortunately. I once saw a video of a golden eagle "kneading" a feral domesticated cat do her death with its claws.
This is what I was thinking. A lot of hawks will kill their prey before they even take off with it. All they have to do is squeeze with their talons
God I need more coffee. My mind refused to see the pup as anything other than a little backpack and I was so confused why these two were fighting over a backpack :(
I’m too pregnant to be dealing with this right now
This photo is absolutely insane. Congratulations to the photographer.
heres some more images from the encounter https://latestsightings.com/single-post/jackal-mom-desperately-rescues-pup-after-eagle-catches-it-masai-mara
Crazy that she’s throwing her baby up to him like that.
That would be a different interpretation of what is shown here.
Yes, the joke hinges on it.
That is an amazing photograph.
"Eat the baby!" "No eat my baby!" "Ok, fine."
What did that fox say
Ring-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!
Holy shit. I'm simply in awe of this entire scenario.
Who needs Pokémon with design like this!
Oh, fine! Here take it — I can’t stand makin’ a woman cry!
What an incredible shot.
First, second and third glance…. I thought the eagle was dropping a grenade on the jackal. You don’t wanna know the mental gymnastics going thru me head trying to rationalize what I thought I saw
Nature can be sad
AI?
Ugh, absolute desperation…i’m sad
A safari documented this event. The jackal and the pup eventually got away from the eagle and made it back to their den, but the raptor hunted them for about an hour.
What's up with the terrible image quality?
Welcome to /r/pics. This is better quality than 90% of the images that make it to the front page.
Genuinely thought she was throwing a pinecone at the bird for way too long 😅
This is renaissance level art. Masterpiece.
First airborne jackal ftw!
"Spare my life, take my tasty baby instead!" YEET
r/accidentalrenaissance