Potteric Carr nature reserve: I captured on camera a heron snacking on an enormous fish at a wild oasis in Yorkshire

Paul Paddock, who lives in Rotherham, has volunteered at the Doncaster-based nature reserve Potteric Carr for 12 years.

On many occasions he has used his photographic skills to capture unique wildlife moments.

Earlier this week, Mr Paddock spotted a heron getting ready to hunt a fish he has described as the largest he has ever seen in a long time.

“Whilst the grey heron is a common bird, it’s great to watch the skill and patience of the bird when fishing,” he said.

“This bird was motionless for a considerable time before striking for this fish, a Tench, [which was] identified by a good friend and fisherman [who was] with me.

“That’s quite a nice moment. That was the largest fish I’ve seen for a long time caught by a heron. Just turn up on the reserve and you never know what you’ll find.”

The moment is fleeting, so finding the right timing to capture them is very important, Mr Paddock said.

“The water there is quite shallow, about a foot to 18 inches deep at the very most, so it was very carefully making its way through,” he said.

“It uses its feet to disturb the sediments at the bottom, that will actually move any fish and that’s when it will go for it.

“But this fish was enormous. We do get carp, perch but this fish was probably around a pound in weight.

“It caught it straight away, it seemed to wander around with it a bit and then it flew off with it so we never saw it take the fish down. It was back within a matter of minutes and that’s when I took the other shots.”

As well as being a volunteer ranger, Mr Paddock is also a seasoned wildlife photographer.

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On the day he took the striking photos, he was using an Olympus OM-1 camera with an Olympus 150-400 with integrated x1.25 converter which gives a focal length of 1000mm super-telephoto.

He has shared tips for photography enthusiasts.

“As a wildlife photographer you have to have the necessary field skills to anticipate the possible actions and be ready to get a sequence of photos that capture the action as it happens - you only get the one opportunity!” Mr Paddock said.

“Whilst waiting, you’re continuously monitoring the camera settings to ensure that the shutter speed is adequate to ‘freeze’ the movement.

“You need to know your camera and lens so that you can make the necessary changes as the lighting varies.

“I have my camera set for continuous autofocus and for a silent sequence of photos at 15-20 frames per second.

“Hopefully, you’ll get the photos you want and that they are in sharp focus. It’s great to get a collection of such photos, especially with the bird flying off with the Tench in its beak (this is a sizeable fish).

“It probably consumed it very rapidly and then returned after five minutes or so, when I got the second sequence with the Heron’s tongue on show.”