Scuba divers in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef were blown away when a group of surprise visitors – eight humpback whales – unexpectedly swam past them in the water.
“Talk about an incredible once in a lifetime experience, but this really happened,” says Master Reef Guides on Instagram.
Guests from Dive and Spear Sport 1770 had just started diving on Llewellyn Reef in the Southern Great Barrier Reef when they were joined by not one, not two, but eight male humpback whales.
“They had only been in the water for about five minutes when out of the blue, these eight large and beautiful humpback whales swam close by,” says Master Reef Guides.
Although seeing so many humpbacks at once during a scuba dive isn’t something that happens every day, these ocean giants can often be spotted in this area during their breeding season.
“Humpback whale encounters are very common during the winter months, and recently we’ve been having so many incredible experiences,” says Carmen Bolten, owner and master reef guide at Dive Spear and Sport 1770.
Llewellyn Reef “seems to have become a favourite pit stop for the whales, with countless encounters this winter season,” she says. “But this one will definitely go down as one of the top moments for us and all our divers.”
Humpback whale used to be hunted commercially but since whaling was banned in the Southern Hemisphere, populations have recovered wonderfully. Experts believe that there are now more than 30,000 humpbacks in this area. This “amazing news” is a great demonstration of how important it is to protect our marine world, Bolten says.
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Top image credit: Hudson Meek, Dive Spear and Sport 1770
