The flying whale

THIS breaching adult humpback whale was caught mid-leap, stunning the 80 tourists aboard a Sea World Whale Watch tour just a short distance off the Gold Coast.

Sea World Whale Watch marine biologist Silje Vindenes was able to use intuition developed from years of studying the mammals to pre-empt the leap and capture the moment on camera.

“Even when it is doing a repeated breach you have to be almost using your intuition to get the shot,” Sea World Whale Watch general manager David Robertson said.

Experts believe the whales breach either for sheer pleasure, to scare off rivals, to appeal to the opposite sex or to shed parasites and slough on their skin.

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