Lesson in survival!
Not from a wildlife documentary...but school nature trip to pond
A TERRIFIED frog struggles free from the jaws of a snake in a dramatic scene worthy of a wildlife documentary.
But this is no David Attenborough special – just a nature lesson that will be remembered for years to come by pupils who saw the drama unfold on a trip to their local nature reserve.
The grass snake had the frog by one leg and tried several times to swallow its prey. But its captive wriggled free and hopped away – to the delight of Year Five pupils pond-dipping at the StourValley reserve in Bournemouth.
Kate Fry, a governance officer at the nearby Epiphany School, caught the moment on camera as she accompanied the children on the visit. She said: “The grass snake was spotted several times. It was clearly hunting for a meal.
“Then I noticed a frog that appeared to rise upright out of the weed. The snake was beneath it pushing it up out of the water and had one of the frog’s legs in its jaw. It was unable to swallow it as the leg was jammed within its throat with the other rear leg outside.
“The snake then began to pull the frog under the water. There was a bit of thrashing around, then the frog jumped across the pond weed and away.
“The children were amazed and thrilled. This was a marvellous learning experience – nature at its finest.”