Spectacular: The giant humpback whale is seen breaching off the coast of Hook Head, County Wexford Remarkable footage of one of the world's largest creatures in a dramatic acrobatic display has been captured in Irish waters.
The magnificent giant humpback whale soars almost effortlessly out of the sea, three miles off Hook Head, County Wexford.
Captured on camera, the spectacular ‘breaching’ provided some of the most dramatic wildlife footage ever shot around the Irish coast.
Rare sighting: The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group chartered a boat after reports of whales in the area Padraig Whooley, of the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group, chartered a boat after reports of large numbers of whales in the area since New Year.
‘One of the largest creatures on the planet “exploding” out of the water is truly one of the most remarkable sights in the animal kingdom,’ he said.
‘None of the researchers had previously witnessed it in Irish waters.’
Humpbacks, which were once hunted to near-extinction, are now found in every ocean and can grow to about 15 metres and weigh up to 40 tonnes.
Remarkable: The humpback - one of the largest creatures on the planet - 'explodes' out of the water
Effortless: The ‘breaching’ provided some of the most dramatic wildlife footage ever shot around the Irish coastScientists are not sure if breaching serves some purpose, such as cleaning pests from the whale's skin or whether whales simply do it for fun.
Wildlife filmmaker Ross Bartley was on board to capture the 45-minute spectacle in high definition.
The footage will be screened in the upcoming Wild Journeys series on RTE which tells the story of humpback whale migration between Ireland and the Cape Verdes islands
source: dailymail
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