When this elephant seal strayed on to their bit of the beach, these penguins weren’t going to take it lying down.

As a result, the young seal suffered a painful pinch on the behind as the gentoo penguins on Antarctica’s South Shetland Islands saw off the intruder.

Clearly, the peck to the bottom hurt as the seal titled its head back and cried out in visible pain.

With space on the shoreline limited, such encounters are inevitable and the penguins appeared eager to lay claim to the pebbly beach.

The other penguins seemed rather unperturbed by the seal cry, with only one gazing up to witness the action.

The image was taken by professional wildlife and award-winning photographer Roy Mangersnes.

Antarctica is accessible only between November and March.

This elephant seal was pecked on the bottom by a gentoo penguin on a pebbly beach in the Shetland Islands

The sharp peck from the penguin’s beak caught the seal by surprise and led to it crying out in pain