In the Kingdom of Tonga, Pacific Ocean – 15-meter Orcas Swimming with Humans
There are many ocean countries in the world, but the Kingdom of Tonga is unique. Here, you can face to face see 15-meter-long orcas – they can't go anywhere else. They swim around you, watching you, waving their fins, slapping their tails, and poking you with their noses. They sing! You can even hear the whales' songs on the beach.
Photographer Yulia Moroz captured the scene of orcas playing with humans on a boat during her travels, using her lens.
Why Tonga? Like other whales and animals, orcas migrate south to Antarctica to find the safest places to breed. By chance, they choose Tonga as a stopover. In these islands' nearby calm, shallow waters, the whales hide their newborns, preventing killer whales and other predators from finding them. A newborn calf, about 4.5 meters long, will spend its first two months here: it will become stronger, gain weight, only after which it will begin its journey across the ocean.
Whales, despite their massive size, are excellent swimmers and completely non-aggressive. They can swim within two feet of you or wave their huge fins in front of you, but they are aware that they can harm smaller creatures like humans, so they behave as carefully as possible. An incredible experience!
Under Yulia Moroz's lens, this 'giant' looks like a child, playing with humans. Perhaps one flip could overturn the small boat in front of them.
The 15-meter-long whale and the photographer's small boat formed a stark contrast in size.
When they suddenly break the surface, they can create huge waves.
When a 1.5-meter human swims alongside a 15-meter whale, it looks very dramatic.
When humans and animals coexist harmoniously, animals will sense and respond in a friendly way.
Thank you, Yulia Moroz, for sharing. To learn more about photography stories and appreciate more excellent photography works, please follow MePic.
