Melbourne: In a rare case of a predator hunted by its prey, a toad has for the first time been captured on camera while eating a whole snake in just five minutes. A tourist at Qingcheng Mountain Park in Sichuan, central China, took the picture of this instance of reversal of roles.

The photo showed a mountain toad eating a Jerdon's pit viper. In an interview with IC Media, Ran Longzhong, from Chongqing, said that he could not believe his eyes when he saw the rare spectacle, and was happy he had his camera with him.

"I was wandering on the mountain road, and suddenly I spotted a toad that was eating down a snake, which was still struggling," the Daily Telegraph quoted him as saying. He added: "The toad ate down the whole snake in around five minutes. It's hard to believe that a predator can be hunted by its prey."

A local zoologist claimed that it was for the first time that he had heard of a snake being eaten by a toad.