Nothing like swimming with a school bus, eh? A group of snorkelers got a little more than they bargained for when they ran into a trio of humpback whales while diving off the coast of Southport, in the Gold Coast area of Queensland, Australia, last month. Humpback whales are one of the most well-known species of baleen whales, popular with whale watchers for their propensity to breach out of the water and splash back down. They are famous for their incredible acrobatics as well as for slapping their fins on the surface. Adult humpbacks typically range from 39 to 52 feet in length and can weigh up to 40 tons. Male humpbacks are also famous for their complex songs, which can last for hours. These songs are believed to play a role in communication and mating. Humpback whales are found in oceans all over the world, and their habitats span from the icy waters of the polar regions to the warm, tropical seas near the equator. Their global distribution and migratory patterns make them one of the most widespread whale species. During the summer months, humpback whales can be found in high-latitude regions such as the Gulf of Alaska, the Bering Sea, the North Atlantic around Greenland, Iceland, Norway, and Canada. These cold waters are rich in food, particularly krill and small fish, making them ideal feeding grounds. Humpbacks also feed in the cold waters around Antarctica, where the upwelling of nutrient-rich waters supports large populations of krill, their primary food source. However, in the winter, humpbacks migrate to warmer waters to breed and give birth. Common breeding areas include the Hawaiian Islands, the coasts of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, as well as tropical waters of the South Pacific (such as around Tonga and the Cook Islands), the Indian Ocean (near Madagascar), and the eastern coast of Australia... where we find ourselves in this video. According to their YouTube video, Max and Jacqueline hired a guide to take them out snorkeling, when they stumbled upon this group of humpback whales, one of which whom, perhaps accidentally, blasted the guide up out of the water with its tail. Like a person swatting a fly...
"This is one of the most incredible encounters swimming with humpback whales on the Gold Coast, Australia! Three fully grown humpback whales were incredibly curious and swimming extremely close to us, then all of a sudden our guide from Aqua Adventures was lifted out of the water by the tail of one of the humpbacks, we could not believe we got hit by whale! We think the rope we were hanging onto touched the whales tail and just like we would flick away an unfamiliar touch, so did the whale, there just happened to be human above him! This was the most incredible encounter we have had and we are so thankful to the team at Aqua Adventures!" Humpback whales are filter feeders, primarily consuming krill and small fish. They are known for their unique feeding technique called bubble net feeding, where a group of whales blows bubbles to corral prey into a tight ball before lunging through the center to feed. So while not technically dangerous to humans, they are absolutely massive... luckily this dude wasn't injured. Check it out. https://youtu.be/XgbNPsHJGnU?si=IBFLt2vnQsbKp7BL Here's the full video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbXdTQXknPQ
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