Man Captures Photo Of Strange Animal On Shore

A Strange Creature

Despite the fact that he was almost out of breath when he reached the pool, what he saw made his heart race even faster. His sight was caught by a long body emerging from the rock wall and scales. However, where was the head of the creature?

A light bulb went off in his head. Instead of one animal, there were three caught in one of the most bizarre tugs-of-war he had ever seen. A few seconds before taking the picture, he fumbled with his camera, unprepared for what would happen next.

Gratitude

Everyone is aware of how the food chain functions. It follows a natural hierarchy of who eats what animal. There is no way to influence it, and it is just the way it is. In Darrin Savas’ opinion, at least.

One day, he would witness something that would be remembered for the rest of his life. It was a blessing he had his trusty camera to take some pictures, as well.

He Loved It

In India’s Madhya Pradesh, Darrin Savas resided. He wasn’t the friendliest guy. He pleaded with his parents to allow him to attend a photography college when he graduated from high school. They finally granted him permission after months of begging.

Darrin completed a two-year study in photography, and his enthusiasm for the subject only grew. However, he was unaware of how fortunate he would be to have chosen photography.

Taking It Everywhere

Darrin started carrying his camera around once he got one for himself. He was most passionate about photographing wildlife. That was a perfect combination with his second favorite pastime, hiking.

While hiking one of the various paths he enjoyed, he would take pictures of everything. But he was unaware that he would later be happy he had his camera with him.

Free Time

Darrin was a self-employed photographer. If he was fortunate, he photographed weddings, which would keep him busy for several months. This left him with a lot of spare time, which he frequently used to go hiking.

Only 15 minutes separated his favorite route from his town. He always carried a camera, and he wondered what he would be able to photograph this time.

A Normal Saturday

Like every Saturday, Darrin made the decision to go hiking. Because he had no scheduled appointments for the weekend, he was content to make the best of his weekend.

He woke up at the crack of dawn, put on his walking shoes, and took out his dependable Nikon. He anticipated a day on the path filled with excitement, but he got more than he anticipated.

His Favorite Route

The reward he received at the conclusion of one particular route was one of the things that made Darris adore it so much. The twisting path skirted the rocky hills before coming to an end not far from a sizable lake.

This suggested that the route was only a few meters from a shore that frequently offered fantastic photo possibilities. It would, however, be something special this time.

A Short Hike

Darrin shot a lot of pictures on the way because it took him about an hour to hike to the trail’s finish. Later, he would edit photos on his laptop, adjusting the brightness, lighting, and colors to really bring out the details.

It truly was his calling. He was aware that nature would never fail to astound him. He was about to have his knowledge of the food chain challenged, but he was unaware of it.

Finally!

Darrin arrived at the coast after an hour and a half journey. It appeared to be a fantastic day to bring his camera because he had regularly paused to shoot pictures. He heard something, though, as he got closer to the coast.

He made the decision to run, camera in hand, toward a nearby pool of water after hearing splashing. It would be a choice that fundamentally altered everything.

Splashing

He rushed up the steep slope, his mind racing with countless thoughts. Was it a fish being plucked from the water? He had to have captured the best photograph of all time with that one.

Even better, he had been successful in getting a good price for that specific picture. He had no clue, though, just how unique this picture would be.

Some Kind Of Animal

He was nearly out of breath by the time he had gotten to the pool. But what he saw made his heart beat even quicker. He saw a long body coming out of the rock wall and scales. But where was its head?

Then it dawned on him. It wasn’t one animal but rather three caught in the oddest tug of war he had ever seen. He fumbled with his camera before taking the picture. But he had no idea how it would change everything.

A Snake, And A Fish?

Darrin tried to understand what he was looking at. He noticed the scales along the body ending with a mouth over them. The mouth belonged to a catfish. But that wasn’t all. He kept scanning the fish’s body.

He jumped back in surprise. Attached to the body of the fish was another snake! He recognized the serpents as keelbacks.

The Strangest Thing He’d Ever Seen

Darrin was awestruck. He couldn’t believe his eyes. It was the strangest thing he’d ever seen. He was grateful he had his camera with him, but he had to watch how things would unfold.

He watched as the snake attached to the wall struggled to get the catfish off of it while the other snake clung to the bottom of the fish. What was going on? And who was the one being preyed on?

A Struggle

Darrin figured that the catfished must have jumped from the water and grabbed onto the first snake with its mouth. But the second snake decided to either help out its friend or just try to get an easy meal.

But just as quickly as it had begun, the struggle would be over in a matter of seconds. This would make the photos he took extra valuable.

Everyone Gets Away

Darrin watched in fascination as the struggle unfolded before his eyes. The snake at the bottom that was holding onto the fish decided to let go. Soon afterward, the fish also let go of the other snake’s head.

The catfish fell into the water and quickly swam off. The dazed snake slowly slinked back into the rocks, and Darrin was only left with the photo to prove what had happened. But this wasn’t the first time an animal in an unusual situation was mistaken for a never-seen-before creature.

They Couldn’t Believe It

The park officials couldn’t believe their eyes when they saw it. At first, they had a hard time even identifying what that animal was. It was like nothing they had ever seen before.

But then, after reading some scientific literature and pondering the different possible hypotheses for what they had just seen, there was only one explanation: after more than a hundred years, it had come back.

It Happened In Mount Rainier

Sometimes, nature surprises us in unexpected ways. Some animals are believed to have gone extinct a long time ago; but suddenly, someone spots one of those animals. And we find out that nature has been following its course away from our observation.

That’s a humbling – and even slightly scary – experience too. And that’s what took place recently in one of America’s national parks.

Stephanie Jenkins

Stephanie Jenkins, the Superintendent of Mount Rainier National Park, expected that day to be fairly similar to the others. Was that a good thing or a bad thing? Well, that’s a difficult question.

She still enjoyed her job, no doubt about it. But after years of taking care of the park and making sure that everything that took place in there conformed to the rules and regulations, things had gotten a little monotonous to her. Until that day.

Things Were About To Get Exciting

Her duties were comfortable, and it was fulfilling for her to think that she was helping to take care of one of America’s richest natural spaces.

But sometimes, she wished for something to happen that would shake her routine and introduce some novelty to the park’s wildlife. Little did she know that, for the better or worse, this was what was about to happen when one of the park employees knocked on her door.

One Of The Employees Had Seen Something

What could it be? “Come in,” she said. She felt amused and curious as she saw the excited, nervous, and a little bit scared face of the employee as he anxiously tip-toed through the door.

“Mrs. Jenkins, we have just seen something that… well, we don’t know what it is. It looks like an eagle, but it looks like nothing we’ve ever seen before. And checking the records, I don’t think it has ever been seen in this park either.”

One Strange Bird

It looked like the bird indeed. But there was something absolutely unusual about it: something that made the bird look like nothing she had ever seen before.

It had a beautiful, impressive orange plumage and an extraordinarily long beak. What in the world could that be? Mrs. Jenkins ordered the employees to follow it and take photos so she could examine the bird up close.

What If…?

So they did. And when Mrs. Jenkins had the chance to look at the photos of the strange bird from a slightly closer distance, a sudden thought struck her mind. Could that be…? But that was impossible!

She identified the animal as a species that she had read about some time ago; some predatory bird known for its orange plumage. But there was only one detail: that species was supposed to have gone extinct more than a hundred years ago.

The Eagle’s History

That species had a fascinating history: apparently, it was brought to America from India by British settlers in the 19th century. It ate mice, rats, and even squirrels.

At the time, its orange plumage was greatly valued for decorative and ornamental purposes. For this reason, it had gone extinct both in India and in America. Or that’s what the scientific community believed up until Jenkins’ discovery. Stephanie explained her discovery in an email and sent it to every zoology department she knew.

The Scholar’s Response

Plenty of universities soon replied to Jenkins’ email. Scholars became greatly interested in Stephanie’s finding. But then, a zoologist shattered all of Stephanie’s dreams.

The zoologist shared a story about two other bright orange birds that were found in Wales, near Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. They resembled Stephanie’s bird, but not all was what it seemed.

Exotic Birds

The zoologist explained that the first bright orange bird was spotted on the side of a highway in Wales.

Everyone was astounded by the bird’s strange, beautiful color – it looked like the phoenix of myth. The bird appeared to have trouble flying, so an excited good samaritan picked it up and called Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital.

No Idea What To Expect

“When they called to say they had picked up an orange bird, we had no idea what to expect – and would never have guessed at this!” Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital posted on their Facebook page, accompanied by a photo of the strange-looking bird.

Everyone was excited that they had possibly found a new species – the bird looked like nothing anyone had ever seen before.

Viral Photo

The photo of the beautiful blue-eyed, orange bird quickly became an internet sensation. Everyone was trying to guess what type of bird it could be.

The vets at the wildlife hospital who examined the bird said that it gave off an extremely pungent smell when they handled it. But, it turned out that the bird wasn’t an exotic new species after all.

Herring Gull

On closer inspection, the vets concluded that the orange bird was just an ordinary herring gull – but that didn’t explain its extraordinary color.

“This is one of the strangest casualty circumstances we have seen in a while! This bright-orange herring gull was rescued by kind members of the public who spotted him at the side of the A41.”

Mistaken Identity

It turned out that the herring gull had somehow managed to get himself covered in turmeric and curry spices – which also explained the smell.

“It was all over his feathers, preventing him from flying properly. We have no idea how he got into this predicament but thankfully, apart from the vibrant colour and pungent smell, he was healthy,” the hospital posted in a viral update.

Vinny

The hospital staff decided to name the gull “Vinny” – after Vindaloo curry. They bathed him in washing liquid and water to clean his feathers.

“He managed to cover them in curry water, but eventually did let us scrub him clean,” they wrote. Then, they posted a photo of the bird’s dramatic transformation. But this wasn’t the first or last time a gull got too close to a vat of curry.

Curry-Covered Gulls

In 2016, another photo of a orange, curry-doused seagull went viral online. The seagull, hilariously named Gullfrazie, had fallen into a vat of chicken tikka masala while trying to scavenge some chicken from food factory waste bin.

Gullfrazie was rescued by workers at the factory and picked up by a volunteer for Vale Wildlife Hospital. When he arrived, the vets were incredulous.

Smart Seagulls

According to research, seagulls are a lot smarter than people believe. Although we see them as pests that infest coastlines around the world, they are surprisingly intelligent birds that learn behaviors from other seagulls.

When one seagull with a taste for curry decided to scavenge from the waste containers around food factories in wales, others started doing it too. But what did this mean for Stephanie’s orange bird?

The Truth

Seagulls can fly distances of 6,000 miles. It’s plausible that a British gull with a penchant for curry had somehow ended up in Washington and across the ocean 3,500 miles away. The zoologist’s explanation for Stephanie’s discovery fit. At first, she was shattered that what she’d seen wasn’t an extinct species. Stephanie couldn’t believe that the “rare” bird was actually a common seagull covered in turmeric. But when she finally came to grips with her embarassment and took a closer look at the photographs, she couldn’t help but laugh.

Disclaimer: In order to protect the privacy of those depicted, some names, locations, and identifying characteristics have been changed and are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblances to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.