A little boy released a butterfly only for it to get squashed when a stranger accidentally trod on it seconds later.

Mom Jadyn Neumann, 30, captured the moment her husband, Tyler, 32, and their little boy, Elliot, four, prepared to release the insect into the wild.

But a moment of joy quickly turned into horror when the butterfly flew low to the ground and a stranger unknowingly stepped on it - squashing it.

Jadyn - who took the video on April 20 in Colorado, US - said: "My son was in silent disbelief. "

"He tracked that butterfly with his eyes so carefully. I was cheering 'yay!'."

"Then I audibly gasp and you can hear my husband, Tyler, quietly say 'oh' - just stunned. "

"It was the craziest and most unfortunate timing - one of those moments where you just jolt and clap your hand to your mouth."

After stopping the recording, the family recovered the butterfly - whose wings were "still flapping a bit" - and placed it on a tree to rest."