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Curious Baby Whale Leaves Mum To Cuddle Up To Diver

Curious Baby Whale Leaves Mum To Cuddle Up To Diver

Australian photographer Eamon Porter filmed the incredible scenes on his drone

Jess Hardiman

Jess Hardiman

Going for a swim and stumbling across a couple of humpback whales would be an honour in itself, but what if one took such a shining to you that it decided to ditch its mum and wander over for a hug? Now that's got to be pretty humbling.

That's what happened to one diver, and thankfully someone managed to capture the whole thing on camera. I mean, it is 2018 - when are things not caught on camera these days?

Australian photographer Eamon Porter filmed the incredible scenes on his drone, having been shooting overheard as two divers kept a safe distance from a whale and its baby swimming away happily nearby.

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The mum was apparently enjoying a nice snooze as the baby happily played around, splashing in the water, but soon the youngster grew curious and decided to leave its mother's side to swim over to the two divers.

Approaching one of the women, the whale flipped onto its back and swam underneath the snorkeler before, amazingly, scooping her onto its belly using its pectoral fin. The pair then lay still, stomach to stomach, for a few seconds.

Using its tail to push itself forwards and away from the stunned woman, the whale calf eventually slipped away and back to its mum.

Twenty-nine-year-old Porter said: "I love how in this instance nature came to the human. Not the other way around.

"I'm sure the mum knew the humans were close by but she had enough trust for her baby to interact with the humans, despite possibly only being a few weeks old."

Of course, things could have taken a turn for the worse if the baby had swung its tail in the other direction and hit the diver, especially given that it will eventually grow to weigh up to 50 tons, but luckily enough the moment was a serene one.

Recently a boat full of tourists in Australia found themselves in a similar situation when a gigantic humpback breached right in front of them, swamping their tiny vessel.

Wildlife photographer John Goodridge, who was on board, said that it was one of the most spectacular whale breaches he had ever seen due to its close proximity to the people on the boat.

He said: "The whales were really playful. Sometimes you can sit out there and not even see one, so we were really lucky."

No fair... I want to see a whale up close!

Featured Image Credit:

Topics: World News, News, Whales, Animals