You should never smile at a crocodile but trying to steal his lunch might be an even worse idea.
Tourists on a river cruise in the Northern Territory in Australia have captured the moment two hungry crocs squared off over a tasty feed.
A three-metre crocodile named Turbo was swimming close to the boat on the Adelaide river on Wednesday, March 24.
A tour operator from the Queen Jumping Crocodile Tour was dangling a piece of meat attached to a rope and a pole when the feeding display took a sudden turn.
A five-and-a-half metre crocodile named Nifty suddenly burst from the murky waters with his jaws wide open snapping at the other beast.
The powerful Nifty flipped Turbo on his back and clamped down on his stomach, viciously flinging him around.
Skipper Steven Pitkin, said the ambush was a surprise for everyone on board as ‘we didn’t know Nifty was in the area.’
‘Turbo has had a hard life. When he was about 1m back in early 2000 he had to be rescued after some fisherman had tried to capture him and put zip ties around his jaw,’ he told NT News.
‘Very sad, but little Turbo is a fighter and even showed up that afternoon with a few battle scars but still alive.
Mr Pitkin revealed that Nifty has a reputation for attacking other crocodiles.
‘Nifty is a big bully, knows he’s a big boss, and it’s not the first time he’s thrown another croc around.’
WA tourist Emilia Hemsley, who also filmed the shocking attack, said she was lucky to get the fight in action.
‘This encounter was with one of the first crocodiles we saw on the tour,’ Ms Hemsley said.
Ms Hemsley confirmed Turbo was able to escape and swim away after the attack.