In the shimmering heat of the Saudi desert, it could be dismissed as a mirage — but photographer Khaled Al Enazi. has the pictures to prove he really did spot a giant fish-shaped rock emerging from the sands.

Al Enazi captured images of the unusual formation using a drone while recording the archaeological treasures of Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ula county — an area known for ancient structures that rival Jordan’s Petra city.

“While I was documenting the area, a view of a mountain appeared in front of me, its shape suggesting a fish in the heart of the desert,” he told CNN via email.

Al Enazi says he’s probably not the first person to encounter the rock formation, but he believes his aerial perspective meant he was the first to note its curious shape.

“A photographer’s eye sees what people do not see,” he said.

The photographer fittingly named the rock Desert Fish.
In drone footage recorded by Al Enazi in June this year, the rock formation resembles an aquatic creature swimming through the golden sand, its dorsal fin-like structures also suggesting it could be a shark emerging from the depths to stalk its prey.

Credit: CNN