A tourist at the Artis zoo in Amsterdam captured a lion in action as it staged a sneak attack on a heron.

In the footage captured by Max Quinn, the stealthy lioness stakes out its prey from a distance while the heron drinks from a pond. The lion slowly and quietly creeps forward until it is within range, then leaps forward and grabs the startled bird before it can escape.

In the wild, lions tend to follow a well-established social structure where the lionesses lead the hunt. However, these opportunistic hunters will rarely pass up a chance to secure a meal.

They typically go after large animals like buffalo, wildebeest and zebras, which they take down as a group. However, smaller prey like birds, tortoises and even mice are fair game too.

Lions aren’t particularly fast runners, so rather than engaging in a lengthy chase, they usually stalk their prey while hiding behind cover to avoid detection until they are close enough to pounce.

Once the lioness in the video captures the heron, a male lion and another lioness immediately come rushing onto the scene—no doubt to get a share of the meal.

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a captive big cat attack a bird in its enclosure. Several years ago, a crane was filmed fighting off two tigers at a zoo in China. In the wild, we’ve also seen a leopard attacking a bird. Cats and birds just don’t get along, do they?