A turtle fought for survival as it was hunted down by a large shark, as creatures battled it out in the open water.

The face-off was filmed by Kaitlin Warnke off the coast of Corpus Christi, Texas.

The tiger shark can be seen relentlessly circling its prey, which thrashes in the water as it tries to swim away.

“There is literally a shark, right there,” a woman’s voice says, while another calls out “poor turtle”.

Another voice is heard shouting: “This is freaking crazy… Go mother nature.”

As the shark comes closer to the camera, revealing its huge frame and powerful fins cutting through the water, it continues to try and bite the turtle.

A male voice jokingly asks if they want to go swimming, which the others politely decline.

Eventually, the pursuit ends as the shark takes hold of the turtle in its mouth and swims down.

Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice award Show all 8 1 /8 Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice award Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice award Winner – Pikin and Appolinaire Pikin, a lowland gorilla, had been captured and was going to be sold for bushmeat but was rescued by Ape Action Africa. Jo-Anne took this photograph as the gorilla was being moved from her former enclosure within a safe forest sanctuary in Cameroon to a new and larger one, along with a group of gorilla companions. She was first sedated, but during the transfer to the new enclosure she awoke. Luckily, she was not only very drowsy, but she was also in the arms of her caretaker, Appolinaire Ndohoudou, and so she remained calm for the duration of the bumpy drive Jo-Anne McArthur Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice award Finalist – Elegant Mother and Calf Every year from July to late October southern humpback whales migrate north from their Antarctic feeding grounds to give birth in the warm sheltered waters off Tonga. Ray encountered this humpback mother and calf peacefully floating in the plankton-filled water around the island group of Vava’u, Tonga. After Ray gently approached them, the giants swam a bit closer to have a look at him. While they made this elegant turn, Ray took the shot. He later converted the image into black and white which he felt represented the simplicity of the scene Ray Chin/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice award Finalist – Warm Embrace When polar bear mothers and cubs emerge from their dens in the early spring, the cubs stay close to their mothers for warmth and protection. Once the cubs are strong and confident enough, they make the trek to the sea ice with their mother so that she can resume hunting for seals. Debra waited six days near the den of this family, in Wapusk National Park, Manitoba, Canada, before they finally emerged. In the most challenging conditions she has ever faced, temperatures ranged from -35C to -55C with high winds, making it almost impossible to avoid frostbite and keep her camera gear functioning properly Debra Garside/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice award Finalist – Roller Rider Lakshitha was on safari in MaasaiMara National Reserve, Kenya, when he spotted an unusual sight – a lilac-breasted roller riding a zebra. Normally they prefer to perch high up in the foliage, but his roller spent an hour or more riding around and enjoying the occasional insect meal. Lakshitha waited for the surrounding zebras to form the perfect background before taking this tight crop Lakshitha Karunarathna/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice award Finalist – Sloth Hanging Out Luciano had to climb the cecropia tree, in the protected Atlantic rainforest of southern Bahia, Brazil, to take an eye-level shot of this three-toed sloth. Sloths like to feed on the leaves of these trees,and so they are often seen high up in the canopy. Luciano Candisani/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice award Shortlisted – Reach for the Sky Steven was taking pictures of a small group of adult roseate spoonbills in a rookery in Tampa Bay, Florida, when he noticed a newcomer flying in from afar. With just enough time to back up a few steps, Steven photographed the bird landing exactly square to his camera with its wings in a stunning symmetrical U-shape Steve Blandin/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice award Shortlisted – Holding On This close-up captures the touching moment an infant lays its small hand in the big hand of its mother. Jami took this photograph while she was in Borneo working on a story about the effects of palm-oil agriculture on orangutan habitat. Loss of primary rainforest is a serious threat to this already critically endangered species Jami Tarris/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice award Shortlisted – Blood Ivory In a protected area of Zululand, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, a ranger’s bloody hand rests on a heavily grained ivory tusk, also covered in the blood of an African elephant. The bull had to be destroyed due to a severe tusk infection that couldn’t be treated.The tusks were removed to a place of safekeeping, where they were carefully catalogued in accordance with legislation Peter Chadwick/Wildlife Photographer of the Year

"The shark would bite it then swim around it and continue this till the shark took the turtle in its mouth to take it under," Ms Warnke said. "The entire time I was thinking about how amazing this was that I got to see nature in such a raw form. I felt sad that the turtle had to die, but there was nothing we could do to save it."

The 20-year-old was both amazed and upset by the spectacle.