MICHELE HLAVA

Nikon Coolpix P900

MICHELE WRITES: My husband Mike and I left Twee Rivieren in the Kgalagadi a little late in the morning, heading for Nossob. But being late meant that we came across this scene near Kij-Kij waterhole…

I think this is an immature black-chested snake-eagle, but I’m not sure. It had already caught the snake when we got there. We watched for a few minutes while the eagle subdued its prey.

TOAST SAYS: Nature can be, well, wild! Usually, you’ll see a snake-eagle soaring above, or maybe perched in a camel thorn tree. You might take a photo, look up the bird on your bird app, and drive on. Snake-eagle, tick. But to actually see a snake-eagle catching a snake… That’s pretty unusual. Sure, they do it all the time, but most of that time you’re sitting at home watching Netflix.

Michele lucked out here, and she maximised her opportunity. It’s all about the eye contact. Even though the snake itself is a little obscured by the shrubs in the foreground, the snake-eagle’s gaze is so arresting that it dominates the scene. It’s almost as if it’s saying: “What are you gonna do about it?”

Now that you’ve seen a snake-eagle catch a snake, Michele, maybe it’s time to try photograph a bat hawk catching a bat, or a palm-nut vulture eating a palm nut!