Brave Seagull Despite Danger Fights with Eagle to Rescue its Friend

THIS is the moment the majestic bald eagle met its match against two seagulls.

The epic aerial battle shows the daily struggle of life in the wild.

A seagull is seen launching in to protect and free its companion from the eagle’s firmly gripped talons.

One of the seagulls was pictured pecking at the eagle's feathers on its neck as it grabbed another bird which nibbled at its talons to try and break free

Photographer David Canales captured the once-in-a-lifetime moment from his kayak on Prince William Sound in Alaska.

The recent graduate from the University of San Antonio, Texas was on an 11-day expedition from Valdez to Whittier.

Few people would bet on a seagull being able to stand up to a bald eagle, a symbol of power and freedom in the US.

Several other birds piled in to try and free their stricken friend but the eagle's talons proved too strong and it quickly flew away from the rabble

But, the powerful bird of prey had a fight on its hands as it tried to grab one of the gulls.

The post went viral after a post on Facebook and sparked wonder over what happened next.

Sadly for those rooting for the underdog, the gulls lost in the battle.

The seagull eventually capitulated and its friends realized there was no hope of saving their fellow bird as the eagle sped away

US Department of the Interior stated that “the eagle won”.

A department spokesperson on Facebook said: “The top gull gave up and the bottom one couldn’t free itself.”

Photographer Canales posted a second photo of the fight a moment or two after the original showing an eagle flying off with the prized gull in its claws.

Despite being clenched in the eagle's powerful talons the captured seagull still attempted to break free by nibbling on its toes

Mr Canales, of Kingsville in South Texas, USA, said: ‘All of a sudden this eagle attacks and landed on this seagull, which caused quite a stir among the other birds.

‘It all occurred so fast, I didn’t know the scale of how dramatic the chase was until I looked through the photos hours later.

‘I was also surprised that the eagle was able to carry the seagull with ease as the seagull isn’t much smaller than the eagle.

The eagle found a rocky outcrop and began to feast on the seagull with many of the other birds still pestering it from a safe distance

‘The eagle was outnumbered by hundreds of seagulls to one, yet it was able to land in the middle of all these birds and just snatch one and fly off with it.’