A once in a million photo looks like something out of a horror movie than something from nature.

The phrase nature can be cruel has never been more appropriate than depicted in a recent photo of a snake eel bursting through the stomach of a heron in mid-flight in a gruesome fight for survival.

The one in a million photo was shot by amateur photographer, Sam Davis, in Delaware, showing the eel dangling from the bird’s stomach as it seemingly nonchalantly continues on its flight, looking more like something out of the movie ‘Alien.’

Photo Courtesy of @22smd/Jam Press

“The heron didn’t seem to act much differently,” Davis, 58, of Maryland, told the outlet. “It was in the water and flying around.”

Hopeful foxes, eagles, and coyotes were seen following the bird along the shoreline, probably expecting an east meal should one or both animals not make it.

Photo Courtesy of @22smd/Jam Press

Snake eels can perform daring escapes by slicing open their predator’s stomach with the pointed tip of their tails, which are generally used for digging.

But experts called the gutsy move strange in the avian world.

Photo Courtesy of @22smd/Jam Press

“I would think this is either very rare or very rarely seen in a bird species, at least as far as I am aware,” John Pogonoski, an ichthyologist with the Australian National Fish Collection, told the outlet.

Davis shot the image with a telephoto lens from more than 225 feet away, and recently shared it on Instagram, calling it his favorite picture of all time.

Photo Courtesy of @22smd/Jam Press

It wasn’t clear if either animal survived.