Photo Catches Eagle Trying to Snatch Little Boy During Bird Show at Australia Park
The eagle has been removed from the show during the investigation.
— -- An eagle tried to snatch a little boy during a recent birds show at Alice Springs Desert Park in Australia's Northern Territory, according to a witness who took a photo of the attack.
The wedge-tailed eagle flew straight at the child, who was wearing a green hoodie and "kept running his zipper up and down," Christine O'Connell, the witness who took the photo, told BBC News.
"Those talons are huge he was a very lucky young boy," O'Connell wrote on Instagram. "The show was quickly cancelled and the boy taken off to first aid."
The incident occurred during the show last Wednesday, the park confirmed in a statement to local newspaper Northern Territory News.
An "eagle made contact with an audience member," the park stated. "A thorough investigation regarding the circumstances behind this incident is under way and the eagle will be removed from the show while this investigation is ongoing."
Alice Springs Desert Park and the Parks and Wildlife Commission of the Northern Territory, which oversees the park, did not immediately respond to ABC News' requests for additional information.