OFF SOUTH MIAMI-DADE, Fl. (WSVN) — In a stunning sight off the coast of South Florida, a sperm whale showed off for a group of boaters.
Larry Manfredi’s and his buddies’ Sunday on the water took an exciting turn.
Manfredi and his friends were boating far offshore, looking for rare birds that can only be seen at sea.
But their eyes turned from sky-watching to the water, when they spotted the massive marine mammal.
“We were looking for some other birds, and we put fish oil in the water to attract birds, so we waited and looked, and one friend looked and said, ‘I see a whale!'” Manfredi said.
Off in the distance, there was a rare sight for even the most experienced mariners.
That massive mammal breaking the surface was a sperm whale.
“Oh, yeah, we got video of the head of the sperm whale!” said a boater.
“He’s going! He’s gone!” said another boater.
Fifteen miles off the South Miami-Dade coast, in waters about 2,500 feet deep, Manfredi said the show on the water was stunning to witness.
“We took the boat over there and got close, and we took great looks at it and took video,” Manfredi said, “and we were all in shock. Hard to believe we can see a sperm whale off Florida.”
Sperm whales can grow to be up to 60 feet long and weigh up to 120,000 pounds.
Video from the BBC shows the size difference between man and whale.
“For me, I was like, ‘I’m good, I don’t need to see any more birds today. We got the whale,” said Manfredi.
As for the novice whale watchers, this is one day out on the water they won’t soon forget.
“It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me and everybody else on the boat, for that matter,” Manfredi said.
Sperm whales are able to dive up to 6,000 feet deep in the open ocean, and they can hold their breath for up to two hours.
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