Octopus clings to a dolphin on the Hastings River
A crafty octopus has been caught on camera in a sticky situation – clinging to a predator to escape becoming prey.
Extraordinary images have surfaced showing a dolphin carrying an unexpected passenger on its back as it leaps from the Hastings River in Port Macquarie, on the New South Wales North Coast.
Local wildlife photographer Jodie Lowe captured the astonishing double act last month while she was snapping the river.
Are you squidding me? An octopus has been caught on camera clinging to a dolphin as it leaps from the water
Stuck on you: The images were captured by Jodie Lowe on the Hastings River in Port Macquarie, New South Wales
The agile dolphin breached the surface of the river with a high dive in the hope of dislodging the would-be meal.
The octopus is believed to have turned the tables when the dolphin tried to attack by hitching a ride for dear life on its back.
Research published last month in Marine Mammal Science revealed the unique methods one species of dolphin use to tackle this defense mechanism.
The bottlenose dolphin shake the octopus in their jaws before slamming it onto the water's surface to wear out the creature's suckered arms.
Once the prey has been battered enough that all eight arms are inactive, it is then safe for the dolphins to swallow their catch.
In 2015, a bottlenose dolphin was found dead on a beach in Bunbury with an octopus hanging from its mouth. Researchers determined the healthy dolphin had suffocated digesting its kill.
Tentacled hitch-hiker: The octopus is believed to have turned the tables on the dolphin after it tried to launch an attack