Australian Photographer Captures Bizarre Images Of Fish Trapped Inside A Jellyfish
If you thought you were having a bad day, think again. An Australian photographer captured amazing images of a tiny fish trapped inside a jellyfish while diving in Bryon Bay.
The bizarre and surreal images have captured the imagination of internet users worldwide after Tim Samuel posted the images via Imgur and Instagram and shared them on Reddit, where they quickly went viral.
On one image on Instagram, Samuel said, “It is crazy how much attention this little guy is getting.”
“When @franny.plumridge and I stumbled upon it we knew we had found something special, but had no idea just how unique and rare this sighting was. I’m completely blown away by all the attention it is getting from all over the world.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BGWJ2gLvG8M/?taken-by=timsamuelphotography
Samuel said he was snorkeling with videographer Franny Plumridge, who can be seen in the background of the photo. Suddenly, he came across the unusual sight of a small fish literally trapped inside a jellyfish.
According to the diver, it seemed the fish had somehow swum inside the jellyfish and was unable to get out again and kept on swimming, in the process propelling the jellyfish along like a little fishy internal combustion engine.
Samuel said in another Instagram post, “I found this fish trapped inside a Jellyfish while free diving in Byron Bay. He was trapped in there but controlled where the Jellyfish was moving.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BGNgBX_vG76/?taken-by=timsamuelphotography
According to that post, prints of the images are now available through Samuel’s website.
In an interview with CNET, Samuel added, “It seemed completely trapped in there, like it had somehow managed to swim inside and then was unable to back itself out. The fish was able to propel the jellyfish forward and controlled its movement to an extent.”
Speaking of the amazing sight, Samuel added that he did consider rescuing the unlucky fish but decided to let nature do its thing.
“The jellyfish threw it off-balance though, and they would wobble around, and sometimes get stuck doing circles. I contemplated freeing the fish as I felt bad for it, but in the end decided to just let nature run its course, which was a difficult decision for me to make.”
In related news on the Inquisitr:
- Amazing Jellyfish Discovered In Ocean Depths Looks Straight Out Of Sci-Fi [Video]
- Jellyfish Invade South Florida: Thousands Of Purple Sailors Wash Ashore Near Miami
- Boca Raton, Florida, Woman Bitten By Shark — Carries It Along To The Hospital Still Attached To Her Arm
A number of people who commented on his various posts on social media said the fish probably met an unfortunate end and was digested by its surrounding and unexpected captor.
This is a photo of a fish *inside* a jellyfish, and nobody’s quite sure how it happened https://t.co/VdrFksKzzM pic.twitter.com/ncLPJiLIhm
— CNN International (@cnni) June 7, 2016
A number of amusing comments popped up on his post on Reddit, made via Imgur, while users tried to imagine what the poor fish was thinking, lodged as it was inside the jellyfish.
One user, seeker2319, quickly quoted Dory from the film Finding Nemo, saying, “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming.”
Another user, jsnforce, quipped, “Well I’m dead, but I’ma steer this translucent-ass motherf***** into a propeller before I go.”
CrimsonWilly commented, “Is he a pilot fish? I’ll show myself out.”
Referring to Samuel’s diving partner, Franny, Neuroactive made a rather more suggestive comment, saying, “Worst day of his life, but at least he got to see t*ts before he died. Most fish can’t say that.”
More images of Samuel’s adventure, as well as other amazing ocean photography, can be viewed on Samuel’s Instagram account, including some phenomenal images taken both above and below the ocean’s surface.
[Image via Flickr by Alberto Rodríguez, cropped and resized/CC BY 2.0]
