In video footage shot in the Western Cape of South Africa, a brown fur seal attacks a dwarf sperm whale. Unfortunately for the whale, it accidentally wandered into the shallow waters of the Hout Bay Harbor.
It’s not known exactly why the seal would carry out this extremely rare attack, though it might be because the seal was especially hungry and spotted an easy meal in the confused whale. Some even speculated that the seal saw the whale as a threat to some nearby pups.
Either way, this was not a good day for the small pygmy whale.
The powerful seal, also known as the Cape fur seal, bombards the distressed whale after taking note of its distress. In an attempt to escape, the pygmy sperm whale launches itself onto the rocky shoreline but is followed closely by the seal.
Watch the footage below.
[WARNING: Not for sensitive viewers]
Not willing to give up, the whale emits a special defense. Much like squid, pygmy whales have a special defense. They can produce a dark, ink-like liquid that helps them evade predators.
Unfortunately, this defense was not enough. The disoriented whale continued to beach itself to avoid its predator, becoming more and more injured. All the while, the whale was under attack by the seal who would not let up.
Full video with sound:
The spectacle took place in a very popular tourist area and officials arrived quickly. They soon determined that the whale was too injured to make it and it was decided the whale needed to be put down as humanely as possible. Its body was collected for research purposes and tourists were forced to collect themselves and continue on with the rest of their day.
