animal.press / Zu 4000 Tierstorys / Tiere huckepack / 01739 Schmetterling auf Kaiman

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By Hayley Pugh They should have been in a flap but these brave butterflies looked completely calm as they took a risky rest on the snout of a sharp-toothed caiman. The ferocious reptile was basking in the sun in the tropical wetland of Pantanal, southern Brazil, when the striking orange butterflies came to rest on its nose. Immediately irritated, the caiman tried to shake the butterflies off but they hung on tight and eventually it was forced to take to the water to wash them off. The remarkable sight was snapped by photographer, Alexandra Sailer, who was on a round the world expedition with her fellow photographer husband, Steffen. The 40-year-old from Germany said getting the shot was tricky because they had to be careful not to frighten the caiman away. She said: "The Pantanal is one of the greatest places on the planet for photography. "The wildlife is so abundant and diverse that one really has the feeling of being in paradise. "We knew about this particular behaviour of the butterflies dabbing away minerals off the snouts of caimans and we were hoping to get the opportunity to photograph it. "It took a few days to find the opportunity but finally we got the shot. "The caiman was very irritated and tried to shake the butterflies off by wagging its head. "Since the caiman couldn't get them to leave, it took off into the water after a few minutes and the butterflies flew off in the end. "It was difficult to get the shot, not because we were afraid to chase the butterflies off but because we were afraid of scaring the caiman away. "When they are on land, they are quite wary and afraid of humans. "The caiman didn't try to eat the butterflies because it knows that's quite an impossible task. "A food source as small as a butterfly isn't worth the effort anyway. Caimans prefer bigger prey which lasts them for a day or even longer."

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