Parenting is similar no matter what species is involved. Parents proudly show off their offspring, whether they are human or animal. We’ve seen a golden retriever proudly showing off her pup. We’ve seen a cat introducing its kitten to a newborn. As proud as parents can be, they can also utilize strict disciplinary actions. Such was the case recently when a young whale attempted to “play” with a human freediver. The diver witnessed the drama as the mama whale scolds a baby whale in a hilarious video.
Before we dive too deeply into this, let’s talk about freediving. This is the practice of diving with no dive gear except flippers and possibly a snorkel. Freediving can be dangerous because the diver has nothing between their skin and the ocean. Each “dive” lasts only as long as the diver can hold their breath. When a diver pushes the envelope, they can experience hypoxia. Hypoxia happens when your body tissues have a low level of oxygen.
The diver who took this video is maxou_freediver on Instagram. He is a freediver and photographer. His images and videos are amazing. On the day of this video, he had been diving to photograph the mama whale and her young daughter, Jade. As he was surfacing from a 15-meter dive, Jade head-bumped him from behind. He was already feeling slightly hypoxic, and the bump startled him.
The tiny, not tiny, whale just wanted to play and was not being aggressive, and she immediately retreated to rest near the surface. What happened next is straight out of every parenting playbook. Jade’s mom appeared from the depths while Jade was basking on the surface after the playful head bump.
Mama Swims Up To Correct The Baby’s Behavior
Mama whale swam right up to Jade and “slapped” the baby whale. The mama whale scolds her baby. While she was speaking whale, you can almost hear the translation (in Dory’s voice, of course), “Leave the tiny human alone! They don’t want to play!”
After the gentle slap, the mama whale continues to scold her baby as she rolls the youngster away from the diver.
Watching The Mama Whale Scold Her Baby Is Better With Sound
You can watch the entire drama unfold in the video below. Please do not try to freedive to capture similar videos without proper training. The person who shot this amazing footage is a professional freediver and photographer. He understands the sea life in the areas where he dives and does not put himself in danger. This mama whale and her daughter are familiar with the diver from previous dives.
You can find the source of this story’s featured image here.
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