These incredible images show two mighty grizzly bears engaged in claw to claw combat - after one tried to swipe a salmon the other had caught for its lunch.
The photographer who stumbled across the aggressive scene in a national park in Alaska said he felt like a 'dead man walking' as he watched the enormous creatures do battle just three metres away from him.
Shogo Asao, 60, said the roars of the brown bears - who each towered at around 8ft tall on their hind legs - echoed around the forest as they clawed and bit one another in the wilderness.
Mr Asao, 60, was making his way to a waterfall in Katmai National Park - famous for its brown bears - when the tussle broke out.
'Suddenly, I saw two bears watching each other and roaring,' he said.
'They quickly began fighting wildly, without noticing that I was very near to them. One ran away until it was just three metres in front of me, and the other chased it at full speed.
'They were roaring, beating, clawing and chasing each other.'
The professional photographer whipped out his camera to capture the showdown.
'This is the first time I had seen such an exciting scene,' he said. 'I was so close to the violent animals that I felt like a dead man walking.'
The two grizzlies - thought to be around six years old - exchanged blows for a few minutes before moving into the trees and continuing to fight, then disappearing from the photographer's view.
Mr Asao, who lives in Tokyo, Japan, said: 'Female bears usually hunt salmon at isolated places away from the waterfall.
'They have to take care of their babies and want to avoid fighting.
'After seeing this, I understand why,' he added.
source: dailymail
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