Locked in a gladiatorial battle, these pictures show the lengths squirrels will go to in order to protect their precious dinner.

The two innocent-looking red squirrels sparred on top of a tree stump, after the squirrel in possession of the nuts took umbrage at a rival trying to share the snack. The aggressor launched himself at his opponent as it tried to creep upon the tree stump, eventually dropping his nut in the fierce exchange.

The animals’ epic brawl was captured at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Ontario, Canada, where visitors regularly leave peanuts for the squirrels to snack on. The pictures, taken by Andre Morozov, capture the animals as their demeanour changes from cute to vicious.

Usually squirrels will try to scare each other with a very specific call or by chasing each other. But in this case, the squirrels’ anger is plain to see, as their orange fur flares up in the height of the drama.

Mr Morozov, 47, said: ‘It was amazing to see. I often come here and see the squirrels but you never see them become this animated so close up. The pictures are like something from a fight scene in a film. It looks almost rehearsed. The amber colours in their fur are really picked up in the light as they move around the tree top, they were clearly playing up to the camera.’

Mr Morozov, a software architect and amateur photographer, used a Canon EOS 7D with Tamron 18-270 II PZD lens to capture the fascinating fight.

Source: dailymail.co.uk