by These amazing pictures show the moment an unsuspecting frog is spotted by a snake and then ᴅᴇᴠᴏᴜʀᴇᴅ whole – as the reptile shows nothing ʙᴇᴀᴛs a wholesome, nutritious meal. The images, taken at a lake in Shibpur, India show the frog leaping from leaf to leaf without a care in the world.
However, the poor amphibian is completely unaware that beneath the surface lies a chequered Keelback water snake waiting for its next meal.
The snake approached its ᴘʀᴇʏ, slowly rose to the surface and dealt a ꜰᴀᴛᴀʟ ʙʟᴏᴡ that made it unable to keep up. The 6-foot long snake then pounces and Sᴡᴀʟʟᴏᴡs the frog ᴡʜᴏʟᴇ, a process that wildlife photographer Rahul Bera, 27, says took around 45 minutes.
The snake seems to sᴛʀᴜɢɢʟᴇ with the frog’s size at times because its mouth is relatively small compared to the size of the frog. However, dislocating its jaws, the snake is able to get a grip of the frog and slowly force it down its throat.
At some points the snake keeps the frog on the water and at other times dives below the surface of the water with the poor amphibian firmly in its grasp.
As the feeding frenzy comes to its conclusion only a pair of loosen frogs legs can be see protruding from the snake’s mouth. It is left with a very large bulge as the frog slips down into its stomach.
Well 45 minutes later, the snake finally finished its breakfast and decided to enjoy the very few rays of the sun to make its way through a dense cloud that covered its head by perching itself on top of a water lily leaf.
“I had to be extremely careful not to blow my cover, if the snake had got any idea of my presence nearby as a defence mechanism it would have ʀᴇɢᴜʀɢɪᴛᴀᴛᴇᴅ the toad and would have disappeared,” Bera said.
“It was indeed a wonderful experience from me, from the very beginning till the end.”
