Resting on a deserted beach, sea captain Jerome Poncet had his sleep disturbed by a huge blubbery local. A four-ton male elephant seal caught him napping near his territory in South Georgia. Tired Jerome, 55, even attracted a flock of King Penguins as he caught forty winks. The dozing Frenchman had piloted his boat Golden Fleece to Britain's most remote colony, near Antarctica, with an expedition team of six wildlife photographers on board. The group had travelled thousands of miles to capture the rutting season of the elephant seal males. Free from his duties, Jerome, who has lived for most of his life in the Falkland Islands, decided to rest on St. Andrew's Bay. But as he snoozed near the water one inquisitive elephant seal hauled itself towards him - ending up just a few feet away. Czech wildlife photographer Vaclav Silha, 47, from Prague, led the expedition and turned to see the show-down. He said: "Jerome is such a deep sleeper he didn't seem to notice the huge male come over to inspect him. The seal must have wondered what this strange creature was."

Credit : VACLAV SILHA / BARCROFT MEDIA