This is the heartwarming moment when a giant, 50,000-pound humpback whale protected an unaware snorkeler from a nearby Shark as it pushed her out of harm’s way.
The hypnotising footage was filmed in the waters off Muri Beach, Rarotonga, of the Cook Islands.
Viewers can see how the whale guided whale biologist Nan Hauser and her team from danger – using his head and his mouth as a steer.
It can also be seen tucking the 63-year-old under its pectoral fin and it even lifts the biologist out of the water at one point.
Nan said the incident, which occured in October, is proof of the whale’s intuitive nature to protect other species of animal – including humans – something she believes has never been captured on film.
The biologist compared this to firemen being willing to rush into a burning home to help save the lives of strangers.
Surrounding the unsuspecting snorkeler and the roughly 14-metres-long mammal was a 15-foot tiger shark.
This is the heartwarming moment when a giant, 50,000-pound humpback whale protected an unaware snorkeler from a nearby Shark as it pushed her out of harm’s way
The hypnotising footage was filmed in the waters off Muri Beach, Rarotonga, of the Cook Islands
The footage shows the whale guiding the diver into a certain direction and it’s not longer before Nan breaks the surface and reveals to her team on board a boat that there is a shark nearby.
Nan says that out of shot, another whale was using his tail and slapping the water to divert the shark away, she told the Mirror.
Initially the snorkeler presumed the shark was another whale coming to join the fun – it was only when she saw its tail moving left to right instead of up to down that she realised it was in fact a more menacing animal swimming towards her.
The footage captures the moment Nan returns to safety and the whale can even be seen peeking above the water to check up on his new friend.
Nan, who lives on the Cook Islands, said: ‘I wasn’t sure what the whale was up to when he approached me, and it didn’t stop pushing me around for over 10 minutes.
Nan said the incident, which occured in October, is proof of the whale’s intuitive nature to protect other species of animal – including humans – something she believes has never been captured on film
‘I’ve spent 28 years underwater with whales, and have never had a whale so tactile and so insistent on trying to tuck me under his huge pectoral fin’
‘I’ve spent 28 years underwater with whales, and have never had a whale so tactile and so insistent on trying to tuck me under his huge pectoral fin.
‘In my head, I was a bit amused since I write Rules and Regulations about whale harassment – and here I was being harassed by a whale’
Scientists have seen cases of whales protecting other species but this will be the first documented case where they’ve actually protected humans from a shark, Nan said.
She added: ‘It’s funny how the tables are turned here: I’ve spent the past 28 years protecting whales, and in the moment, I didn’t even realise that they were protecting me!’
Scientists have seen cases of whales protecting other species but this will be the first documented case where they’ve actually protected humans from a shark, Nan said
Nan added: ‘It’s funny how the tables are turned here: I’ve spent the past 28 years protecting whales, and in the moment, I didn’t even realise that they were protecting me’