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A cormorant who realized he couldn't quite eat his rainbow trout in one swallow has been captured in incredible pictures off the Gulf Coast of Texas.

The aquatic bird, which can weigh as much as 11 pounds with a wingspan of up to 39 inches, spent more than 30 minutes trying to swallow the large fish until he gave up, realizing he'd lost the battle.

Eventually, the rainbow trout was released, but not before amateur photographer Shahin Abasov managed to get some images, SWNS reported.

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The cormorant struggles to swallow thw catfish on the island of Galveston, Texas, USA. See Masons copy MNSWALLOW: These remarkable images show an astonishing moment of a Cormorant finding it extremely difficult to swallow a large catfish. The 'excellent' photographs captured by an amateur photographer were taken on the island of Galveston, Texas. Shahin Abasov, 59, has managed to catch the moment a Cormorant attempting to swallow the Catfish for 30 minutes until it eventually gave up and let him go. (©Shahin Abasov / SWNS.com)

“The fish was pretty big, he could not swallow it, so he gave up and let him go," Abasov, 59, said, according to The London Economic. “The fish was alive at the end of it and managed to swim away, he was lucky as most of the time they’re swallowed."

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The cormorant struggles to swallow thw catfish on the island of Galveston, Texas, USA. See Masons copy MNSWALLOW: These remarkable images show an astonishing moment of a Cormorant finding it extremely difficult to swallow a large catfish. The 'excellent' photographs captured by an amateur photographer were taken on the island of Galveston, Texas. Shahin Abasov, 59, has managed to catch the moment a Cormorant attempting to swallow the Catfish for 30 minutes until it eventually gave up and let him go. (©Shahin Abasov / SWNS.com)

Abasov snapped the remarkable prints in Galveston, noting there were other cormorants going in for a snack, but this particular one struck his fancy.

“When they catch the small fish they can swallow it straight away," Abasov added, before noting, “But when the fish is big, the cormorants will come over and fight to try and take them.”

Follow Chris Ciaccia on Twitter @Chris_Ciaccia