READER’S DIGEST
June• 2019 | 77NIGHT FLIGHTBY MICHAEL PATRICK O’NEILL /USA
On a night dive over the Atlantic, far off Florida’s Palm Beach, this flying fish sprints
away from potential danger by rapidly beating its unevenly forked tails to build
up enough speed to soar up and out of the water. A mere 13 centimetres long, it
spreads its pointed pectoral fins like wings to glide several hundred metres.
This mighty amphibian
with its struggling prey
was downstream in
Tennessee’s Tellico River.
Things are not looking
good for the northern
water snake, clamped
tightly in the jaws of the
hungry hellbender, North
America’s largest aquatic
salamander. Growing up
to 75 cm long, it breathes
primarily through its
skin. It seeks shelter and
nesting sites under loose
rocks and favours cool,
flowing water in creeks.HELLBENT
BY DAVID HERASIMTSCHUK
USA