Video captures gray whale giving birth to calf off coast of Dana Point
The crew said as the boat approached the whale, the newborn calf came up to the surface.
DANA POINT, Calif. (KABC) -- Passengers on a whale watching boat off the coast of Dana Point captured a once-in-a-lifetime sighting: a gray whale giving birth!
The video was captured by Captain Dave's Dolphin and Whale Watching Safari and has garnered thousands of views.
The crew said as the boat approached the whale, the newborn calf came up to the surface and started learning how to swim as it bonded with its mother.
"For a minute, many of us thought it may be a shark or predatory event. But no, instead of the end of life, it was the beginning of a new one!" read the video's caption on YouTube.
The whale watching group said gray whales prefer to give birth in the warm and protected lagoons of Baja California, Mexico.
The lagoons offer safety from predators like orcas, as well as warm water for calves.
Editor's note: This report was originally published in January 2023.
