Humpback whale slaps cameraman in the head (video)

There are close whale encounters, and there are really close whale encounters. But rarely, if ever, does anything like this happen.

The accompanying footage shows cameraman Chris Coates being approached by a mother humpback whale and her calf, and slapped in the head–either accidentally or on purpose–by the larger whale's pectoral fin .

Viewers can hear Coates mumbling his concern as the whale approached and after it connected.

 

The incident occurred during a freediving expedition off the east coast of Africa. Coates, 38, and his group had been seeing whales throughout most of the day, but did not anticipate anything like this.

Coates was not injured and described the physical contact to JukinVideo's Mike Skogmo.

"The whale hit me on the head and hand," he said. "I could feel its barnacles scraping over my forehead. The slap with the fin was quite hard, but I don’t think it was trying to hurt me or it would have been way harder. It also must have hit the camera because it hit my hand that was holding the camera."

–Pete Thomas

–Hat tip to GrindTv Outdoor

Comments

[Eagle Wing Tours]

Okay..now THAT was close! I know humpback whales are very good mothers but they can be a tad bit on the over-protective side when it comes to their babies. The mothers can be quite fierce if they think their baby is being threatened so you'd feel it a lot more if that were the case. In this incident, it was more likely a subtle hint that you've invaded their personal "bubble".

It must have been amazing to be so close to the whales though!

[Whale researcher]

That was a clear message from Mama to the diver to back off. No doubt about it - she knew exactly what she was doing. He's lucky.

[Margaret Webb]

This is why there is a Marine Mammal Protection Act in the United States.