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Little did Stefano know that when he headed out for his dive boat with his guests on Wednesday that they would be in store for a truly magical encounter.

Traveling between Noo Giri and Ali Thila, the boat suddenly came to a stop as they spotted something big on the surface.

As the guests jumped in the water to swim with this giant, closer investigation showed that the big lump in the atoll was in fact a Humpback Whale!

Stefano and his guests spent some incredible minutes watching the whale as it circled beneath the boat a couple of times before heading off into the middle of the atoll.  There was more than enough time however, for Stefano and the guests to get some great photos, including the one you see above!

Humpback Whale Fact File:

Size: 13 – 16 m, max 25m

Weight: 35 – 40 tonnes, max 65 tonnes

Age: approx 40 – 60 years

Sexual Maturity: at 4 – 5 years, or approx 11m in length

Mating Season: Winter

Size at Birth: 4.5m

Dive Depth: Rarely over 50m

Dive Time: 15 – 30 min

Maximum Speed: 27 km/h

Distinguishing Marks: Humpbacks have lumps (tubercles) on their head and lower jaw.  In addition, the markings on the belly of the whale are unique and can be used for identification.