animals

Watch: Humpback whale swims alongside kayaker off Australian coast

Humpback whales are commonly seen along Australia’s eastern coast between the months of April and November as they migrate from Antartica.

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In a now-viral video, a humpback whale was spotted swimming right alongside a kayaker near a beach in Australia last week.

The video, taken off the coast of Sydney, Australia, shows a birds-eye view as the curious whale swims near the kayak.

The drone video, shared on Instagram, has garnered 1.4 million views since being shared on June 24. 

“Do you know there’s a whale just following you?” the photographer said in the video. 

“I don’t think he knows,” he went on to say. 

At one point in the video, you see the whale directly next to the kayak, showing the enormity of the mammal compared to the boat.

Humpback whales can weigh anywhere from 50,000 to 80,000 pounds.  

The kayaker and whale were spotted near Australia’s Bondi Beach.

Hundreds of whales have been spotted off the Sydney coast in June as the marine mammals migrate from Antartica, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Humpback whales are commonly seen along Australia’s eastern coast between the months of April and November, according to country’s Department of Planning and Environment.

They marine mammals return to Antartica between September and November each year.

Humpback whales are now a protected species in Australia, thanks to the country's Biodiversity Conservation Act of 2016. 

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