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These surfers look miniscule in comparison to the majestic marine mammal in their midst.
The amazing scenes of a southern right whale emerging from turquoise waters were captured at Freshwater Beach off the coast of Sydney on Sunday.
But the awe-inspiring sight belies a hidden danger - last year a surfer was injured by the same species of whale at Bondi Beach.
And, aware of the risk of injury from the animal’s huge fins, the surfers in the video are seen quickly paddling away as the whale turns in the waves.
The footage was filmed from a helicopter by Australian TV channel Nine News .
The whale appeared to be in a playful mood, swishing its tail and swimming alongside the surfers - but the fun and games were restricted by national law, which dictates that swimmers should not be closer than 30 metres to a whale, while surfers and boats are required to keep 100 metres away.
Resident Ian Hansen, who witnessed the scenes, told Fairfax Media : “To be honest they were harassing it a bit. They were so close and it had no room to move... If I was the fish I'd be harassed too. It'd move a bit and they'd back off.
“I was pretty worried to see one guy out there with a kid on his board. It's a big animal, one tail flick and we could have a death on our hands,” he added.
Show all 23 1 /23The rarest animals in the world The rarest animals in the world Goblin shark Dubbed the "alien of the deep", the goblin shark was caught by a commercial fisherman off the coast of Eden, New South Wales. The carcass of the terrifying looking creature was then donated to the Australian Museum in Sydney so that it could be dissected
YouTube/Australian Museum
The rarest animals in the world Glass frog Scientists in South America have discovered a brand new species of frog – and he’s a dead ringer for Kermit the frog. Hyalinobatrachium dianae is an inch-long glass frog with identical bright green skin, a translucent belly, and bulging white eyes with black pupils. The new species found by Costa Rican Amphibian Research Center on the Talamanca hills of the country, was named after the senior researcher’s mother Diane and brought the total known species of glass frogs on the island to 14
BBC via YouTube
The rarest animals in the world Walking fish (climbing perch) A bizarre and seemingly super-powered fish which can walk out of water and breathe on land for up to six days could spell a 'major disaster' for wildlife, scientists have warned. The aggressive climbing perch, which has lungs as well as gills, has been discovered in northern Australia
YouTube
The rarest animals in the world Frilled shark A rare and terrifying frilled shark has been pulled from the water by fishermen near Lakes Entrance in Victoria, Australia. Also known as the "living fossil", the frilled shark is named for its six pairs of frill-like gills. The shark’s origin dates back 80 million years, and is one of two species that is still alive from this period
SETFA
The rarest animals in the world Black Sea Devil anglerfish Researchers in the US have released what they believe to be the first video footage showing a bizarre-looking Black Sea Devil anglerfish in the wild. As anglerfish live in the deep sea, they are very rarely seen in their natural habitat, and fewer than half a dozen have ever been captured on film or video in the wild, according to experts at the Monterrey Bay Acquarium Research Institute (MBARI)
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
The rarest animals in the world Blue lobster A rare blue lobster was caught off Pine Point in Scarborough, Maine. The crustacean is being donated to the Maine State Aquarium
AP Photo/Meghan LaPlante
The rarest animals in the world Two-headed dolphin A con-joined dolphin found on the beach of the Aegean Sea coastal town of Dikili, Izmir province of Turkey
AP
The rarest animals in the world Conjoined whales A pair of conjoined gray whale calves have been found off the coast of Mexico, in what scientists believe could be the first discovery of its kind
CONANPHO/AFP/Getty Images
The rarest animals in the world Fish-eating spider (Dolomedes facetus) Dolomedes facetus captured pond fish (genus Xiphophorus) in a garden pond near Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The number of spiders who catch and eat fish is on the rise across the world, scientists believe
Peter Liley, Moffat Beach, Queensland
The rarest animals in the world Dancing frogs A frog couple from one of the 14 new species of so-called dancing frogs
AP/Satyabhama Das Biju
The rarest animals in the world Kakapo Conservationists in New Zealand are celebrating after an extremely rare kakapo chick hatched from a cracked egg held together by nothing more than tape and glue. The bird joins a global kakapo population of just 125 birds
Creative Commons. Photo: jidanchaomian, via Flickr.
The rarest animals in the world Migaloo the white whale Migaloo the white whale, sighted at the Bernard Islands
Twitter/Migaloo the Whale
The rarest animals in the world Domed land snail Living in complete darkness more than 900 metres below the surface has left this tiny snail with no pigmentation in its shell. Discovered in the caves of western Croatia the Zospeum tholussum is also a slow mover, creeping just a few centimeters each week.
The rarest animals in the world Leaf-tailed gecko The mottled colouring on this gecko helps it blend in with the rain forests and rocky habitats of eastern Australia. It also has an extremely wide tail (from which it gets its name) to further confuse predators
Conrad Hoskin
The rarest animals in the world Flying frog A Giant green flying frog which is among the new species found by scientists in the Greater Mekong region
PA
The rarest animals in the world Megamouth shark An extremely rare female deep-water megamouth shark has been caught off the coast of Shizuoka, Japan, and is believed to be only the 58 sighting of the animal on record
The rarest animals in the world A Maui's dolphin Fears grow for Maui's dolphins after New Zealand government opens west coast block for oil and gas drilling
youtube
The rarest animals in the world Geep A rare goat-sheep hybrid has been born on an Irish farm, much to the surprise of a farmer who said the ‘geep’ is thriving since its birth
Irish Farmers Journal
The rarest animals in the world Omani owl An Omani Owl, a species completely new to science
PA
The rarest animals in the world Albino dolphin A rare albino calf being herded into Japan's notorious Taiji 'killing' Cove, where hundreds of dolphins are slaughtered during its annual hunt
Sea Shepherd/EPA
The rarest animals in the world Stone curlew The stone curlew is one of the UK's most threatened birds and has recently returned from their wintering grounds in Africa and Spain
Getty Images
The rarest animals in the world Mascarene Petrel A unique photograph has been taken of a bird with a visible egg showing after experts sent to study a critically endangered Mascarene Petrel on a remote Indian Ocean tropical island encountered an undeniably pregnant member of the species
Hadoram Shirihai
The rarest animals in the world Albino cobra A "very dangerous and venomous" albino cobra has been found in a suburban Los Angeles neighbourhood after escaping from a home there
Dept. of Animal Care and Control, County of Los Angeles
The surfers were reportedly told to move away from the creature over the loudspeakers at Freshwater Surf Lifesaving Club.
A spokesman for the NSW Marine Police told Fairfax Media that they sent out a boat to patrol the area and ensure neither the spectators nor whale were injured.
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