The great white burst from the water only for the seal to bounce off the tip of its nose and be thrown in the air. On the way down the shark snapped with its razor-sharp jaws, missing the airborne seal by the finest of margins. The heart-stopping scene was captured by underwater photographer Sergio Riccardo near Cape Town, in South Africa. Due to the dense population of seals on Seal Island - just a few kilometres from Cape Town - the location is a prime feeding location for great whites.Mr Riccardo, 51, from Sorrento, Italy, said: 'The boat began to follow the seals back to Seal Island where there are around 70,000 seals.'During this process the seals are often the subject of attacks by great white sharks.'They launch themselves from underneath the seal, knocking it above the surface and snapping the mammal in their mouths.'The speed with which the sharks attack brings them to jump completely out of the water. I was glad to see the seal escape on this occasion.' Seal Island is a granite rock around 800m long by 50m wide which sits no more than 6m above sea level about three and a half miles off False Bay, near Cape Town.It is home to huge numbers of seals - around 65,000 - which give the rock its name, and is also a popular breeding site for seabirds. The area where the sharks circle the island is known by locals as the 'Ring Of Death'.
Bakudaily.Az