A group of tourists was surprised last Friday by a humpback whale that came very close to a boat off the coast of Newport Beach in Southern California.
“We had an extremely friendly humpback whale that was 'mugging' our whale watching boat off Newport Beach,” said Mark Girardeau, from Newport Coastal Adventure.
“This is a very rare behavior and our engines were shut off. The whale circled our boat for about 30 minutes,” he added.
Humpback whales inhabit the oceans of much of the earth. They usually travel great distances each year and are the species with "one of the longest migrations of any mammal on the planet," according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The Hurricane season is on. Our meteorologists are ready. Sign up for the NBC 6 Weather newsletter to get the latest forecast in your inbox.
In California, it is possible to see humpback whales from mid-May to September, but sometimes they can be seen even until December, according to information from the Channel Islands National Park.
Humpback whales are part of the list of endangered protected species. Furthermore, “the International Whale Commission gave humpback whales worldwide protection status in 1966. Since then it has been illegal to hunt humpback whales anywhere in the world,” according to Channel Islands National Park.
A close encounter with these great animals is always a breathtaking spectacle that recalls nature's splendor.
