Incredibly rare sight at a popular beach stuns: ‘Mother Nature at her best’

Rare footage has captured a baby humpback whale calf swimming alongside to its mother at a popular beach. 

The video showed the newborn swimming at Cabarita Beach, near Tweed Heads, on the NSW North Coast, on Wednesday. 

The video was shared to Instagram by Brandan Trudinger, a content creator who runs professional photography and video production business Ninefive Creative. 

The clip showed the creature and its mother swimming side by side before the mother extended its left fin to allow her baby to nestle in closer. 

‘Spotted what I think is a rare albino humpback whale,’ Mr Trudinger wrote.  

‘From what I’ve heard, these sightings are pretty rare. Any whale experts out there who can share some details?’ 

Social media users praised Mr Trudinger for capturing the impressive footage with some clarifying it was not albino but a standard colouring.

‘Sorry to burst the bubble, this is a regular newborn. They are very light grey when [they are] born,’ one wrote.

Others shared their awe at the impressive sight.

‘Video is bright. Nice footage,’ one said. 

‘Very cool footage,’ another said. 

One added: ‘Mother Nature at her best.’ 

Others said Mr Trudinger was very lucky to find the whales during a very intimate moment during their migration. 

‘Awesome find. Always a great day when you see a mum and her newborn,’ a third chimed in. 

Baby humpback whales are usually very pale or grey in colour after birth, but the creature begins to turn darker after a couple of days.

Adult female humpbacks usually give birth to calves every two to three years. 

The creatures migrate to warmer waters, including off the Queensland coast, when they are pregnant to make sure they give birth to their calves safely. 

The whales then return to the Antarctic after the baby develops a layer of blubber to protect itself from the colder waters. 

Calves can weigh up to around a massive 3,600kg when they are born.