Drone pilot and underwater videographer Bartolomeo Bove has captured impressive footage of brown bears on the hunt for salmon in Kurile Lake, far-east Russia.

The aerial visuals recorded on August 10 show the huge predators taking a dip in the lake before gorging on some fish.

According to Bove, the Kamchatka Peninsula is home to approximately 24,000 brown bears.

He said: "The area of the Kurile Lake, the deepest and the second largest lake of the Peninsula, in Southern Kamchatka is visited during summer by approximately 100 bears hunting for salmon.

"I have spent five days on the lake filming these magnificent animals. Kurile Lake lies within the crater of a huge volcano that long ago produced one of the greatest eruptions in the planet’s history.

"The lake is still circled by active vents and mineral-rich ash from the regular eruptions has made its waters particularly fertile. Millions of salmon come to Kurile Lake from the Pacific Ocean to spawn in its fertile waters which will provide their young with abundant food.

"Early in the season though the fish is still strong and swift. When hunting seems to fail, and nothing seems to work when chasing the fish swimming fast in the streams one old bear knows that there is an easier meal to get and paddles out into the lake away from the shoals of newly arrived salmon where there is food that doesn’t need chasing.

"Some of the first fish to arrive have died and they can be easily collected from the bottom of the lake."

Bartolomeo Bove is a shark diver, underwater videographer and certified drone pilot.

At the beginning of August 2023 he traveled to the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russian Far East, to film the largest brown bears of Eurasia.

The Kamchatka Peninsula, Russian far east, is home to approximately 24000 brown bears, the largest brown bears of Eurasia, excellent swimmers and sharp predators.

The area of the Kurile Lake, the deepest and the second largest lake of the Peninsula, in Southern Kamchatka is visited during summer by approximately 100 bears hunting for salmon.

I have spent 5 days on the lake filming these magnificent animals. Kurile lake lies within the crater of a huge volcano that long ago produced one of the greatest eruptions in the planet’s history.

The lake is still circled by active vents and mineral rich ash from the regular eruptions has made its waters particularly fertile. Millions of salmon come to Kurile Lake from the Pacific Ocean to spawn in its fertile waters which will provide their young with abundant food.

During summer Kurile Lake contains the densest assembly of bears to be found anywhere on Earth. All hungry for salmon.

Early in the season though the fish is still strong and swift. When hunting seems to fail, and nothing seems to work when chasing the fish swimming fast in the streams one old bear knows that there is an easier meal to get and paddles out into the lake away from the shoals of newly arrived salmon where there is food that doesn’t need chasing.

Some of the first fish to arrive have died and they can be easily collected from the bottom of the lake.