Watch: Incredible underwater footage shows huge brown bear catching salmon for his dinner

This is the spectacular moment a brown bear finally catches his tasty salmon dinner after numerous attempts.

The powerful predator stationed himself near a bridge on the Ozernaya River in the South Kamchatka Federal Sanctuary in Russia to seek out his prize.

As the salmon made their way from the Sea of Okhotsk to Lake Kurile, home to the largest gathering of sokeye salmon in Asia, the bear lay in wait for a lucrative haul.

Incredible underwater footage shows the imposing male climbing into the water before remaining perfectly still.

After a few attempts, the bear finally catches his prey, lashing out with both paws to seize it before climbing back out of the water with a tasty meal.

Russian Mikhail Korostelev was able to get close enough to the bear with his camera to capture the action.

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He said: “This bear was fishing almost every day near the bridge. He was clearly having a lot of success there.

“I decided to put my GoPro on a monopod and place it in the water to see how well he was fishing.

“The bear put his head under the water and looked for fish. For a long time he doesn’t move as he waits for the fish to come closer. Then he strikes decisively.

“It was a really exciting moment to get so close to a bear. I was so close I could feel his breath.

“It’s not quite as dangerous as it might have been. Photographers and tourists constantly come here and national park rangers live here all year round, so the bears are used to people and trust them.”

He added: “There are lots of fishes that come through here every day. The salmon swim along the Ozernaya River from the Okhotskoe Sea to Lake Kuril to spawn.”

Mr Korostelev said the bear in the video is the biggest male in the area and is normally left to fish alone because other bears are afraid of him.