A harbor seal wrestling with a large octopus off Ogden Point in British Columbia got lots of attention from onlookers celebrating Family Day earlier this week.
“It was incredible. It looked like he was bringing it up to show it off,” Victoria resident Bob Ianson tells Times Colonist. Ianson is a hobby nature photographer, and he shared this epic set of photos on Facebook. He and his family spotted the seal just a couple of meters offshore carrying the octopus in its mouth around 2 p.m., and even though the cephalopod continued to wrap its tentacles around the seal’s head, it seemed to have lost the fight.
Harbor seals have been spotted hunting octopuses (especially juveniles) in the area in the last few years. "Octopus is a regular part of the harbor seal's diet," Vancouver Aquarium’s Chad Nordstrom tells CBC. "Actually capturing it on film is the rare thing." You can watch a video of the first of such encounters witnessed at Ogden Point, recorded two years ago.
Images: Bob Ianson via Facebook
