A brown snake eagle made a daring attempt to make a meal out of a venomous snouted cobra in this rarely filmed encounter.

Brown snake eagles will often prey upon snakes, but they are not immune to the potentially fatal venom that a cobra like this possesses. If the snake is able to strike the eagle, the venom’s powerful neurotoxin will attack the bird’s nervous system.

However, in this case the bird was able to avoid the snake’s attacks, but was unable to subdue the serpent. The battle ends as the eagle retreats in defeat.

This was filmed on the H7 near Satara in the Kruger National Park in South Africa by Catherine van Eyk.