Kayaker rescues red squirrel under attack from spawning bass in river

May 28 (UPI) -- A man fishing on an a New Brunswick, Canada, river noticed some unusual activity in the water and ended up rescuing a red squirrel struggling with some bass.

Matt Myers said he was fishing for striped bass on the Miramichi River when he saw a group of bass splashing at the surface of the water.

"I was watching some splashing and all of a sudden I looked to the side and I thought 'What is that in the middle of this spawning activity?'" Myers told CBC News.

He said he initially thought the bass were attacking a stick, but he then realized they were nipping at an animal.

"Lo and behold, it's this poor little red squirrel in the middle of all this spawning activity," Myers said. "The bass appeared to be coming up and nipping at it."

Myers used his paddle to scoop the squirrel up onto his kayak and gave it a ride back to shore.

He said the fish had likely confused the squirrel's splashing for a female preparing to lay her eggs.

"I don't think they were trying to eat it," Myers said.