A Diving Sperm Whale off Kaikoura, a photo from Marlborough, South Island

Photographer's Note

An early morning shot of an 18 metre giant sperm whale diving off the coast near Kaikoura. The whales dive for 45 minutes to an hour into the Kaikoura Canyon, a trench in the ocean floor that allows the whales to hunt at over a kilometre in depth.

Kaikoura's Sperm Whales are the biggest of the toothed whales and the worlds' largest carnivore. They are equivalent in size to four elephants and each of their teeth can weigh more than a kilogram and grow to 20cm in length. Sperm Whales dive into the dark abyss of the Kaikoura Canyon to hunt prey such as the Giant Squid.

Seeing a sperm whale was one of the highlights of my trip to New Zealand and it's a magical experience to see the fluke disappear below the surface. While waiting for the whales to appear, it also gave the chance to see albatros and other ocean birds, as well as dusky dolphins on the way back to Kaikoura.

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Critiques | Translate

aadilj (18102) 2008-03-06 21:41

SUPERB WILD ACTION THAT HAS BEEN CLICKED AT THE RIGHT MOMENT. THE WORK IS GOOD AND THE COMPOSITION IS LOVELY. i LIKE THE WAY YOU HAVE FRAMED IT

tola_ch2004 (549) 2008-03-06 21:54

It is must be very surprise to see the whale.
Thank you for sharing this.

Tola

Propofol (1790) 2008-03-08 15:14

I would hope that it wasn't that much of a surprise to see that whale, as I presume you were on the same Whale Tour that I also went on, back in 2006. I appreciate this shot because I understand how tricky it is to catch just this moment, on a rocking hydrofoil! Well done.

avenger_isd (6) 2008-05-09 5:58

Nice Shot.

I loved Kaikoura while i was there!

I never got to see whales but there are plenty of seals!!

The coast line is fantastic and has many oppotunities for great photos

John