A baby humpback whale beached itself in the early hours of Monday morning, sparking a rescue effort that lasted until 10.30am. A crowd watched on at Surfers Paradise as rescuers worked to free the whale. On its way out to sea, the whale became tangled in shark nets, but was cut free after about an hour by Sea World Officials. It was believed that the baby was rejoined with its mother, but this proved to be a false alarm as officials had photographic evidence that the calf spotted was different from the beached calf.
Baby humpback whales weight 1500kg at about two weeks, making the effort that much harder. Adults can weigh up to 40,000kg and be up to 17 meters long. They are very acrobatic, frequently coming up to the surface and jumping through the air, creating quite a scene. This time of year, humpback whales are commonly found within 6km off the east coast of Australia, as they move north along ocean currents to northern Australia waters.
PRODIVE offers Whale Watching Tours out of Rose Bay Ferry Wharf, Star Casino Wall, and Manly Yacht Club Jetty, five days a week. You?re almost guaranteed to see a whale! If not, you?ll receive a voucher for another tour. Book soon, and maybe you'll see this whale rejoin with its mum.
