Gray Whale Gives Baja Whale Watchers the Show of a Lifetime

Natalia Moreno Fimbres is an adventure guide who takes wildlife enthusiasts through the Baja Peninsula, where hundreds of gray whales migrate each year. Recently, a gray whale treated Fimbres and her guests to the show of a lifetime. The animal came up to the boat, laid on its side, and opened its mouth, showing off its baleen.

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In the video, taken by a guest but posted to Instagram by Fimbres, a giant gray whale has its rostrum up against the boat. It’s so close that you can see the bristled keratin plates of the whale’s baleen. A male voice in the background says “wooooooow,” completely in awe.

Watch the interaction unfold here:

Fimbres frequently posts videos of whales approaching boats and willingly interacting with guests, even allowing the humans to touch them. However, she calls this interaction a “rare moment.”

Gray whales can be up to 46 feet long and weigh 35 tons. Like other baleen whales, this species doesn’t have teeth. Rather, it uses baleen to filter food (mostly plankton) from the water.