Nan Hauser was a skilled marine biologist and had been studying whales for thirty years. She was a professional deep-sea diver and was no stranger to getting up close and personal with the huge mammals. However, her latest project involved creating safer spaces in the South Pacific Ocean for whales to live. During one particular dive, she encountered a whale in distress, and what happened next was a life-or-death situation...
Island Life
Nan lives on the Rarotonga in the Cook Islands. She is a leading biologist in the marine life field, and her work with whales has been featured on Animal Planet, the Discovery Channel, and National Geographic. Her island home is a breeding ground for 21 species of dolphins and whales, 600 species of fish, and 16 species of sharks. One afternoon, Nan took her speedboat out to open water and prepared for a dive...
An Unexpected Visitor
Humpback whales can weigh up to 40 tons and can measure up to 60 feet long. When Nan dove into the water, she saw one was swimming right towards her. Before she could react, the whale swam right past her and up towards the surface. However, upon closer inspection, this was not a humpback whale. She wasn't sure what it was. She watched in disbelief at what happened next...
She Was Fearless
Though Nan was typically unafraid while diving alone, she had no idea what type of whale this was, or what it was doing. She knew from experience that it was smartest to keep her distance rather than antagonize the animal, so she watched from afar. When it got closer to her and began to breach the surface, she started to get nervous...
Something Wasn't Right
Though Nan didn't plan on getting so close to the whale, it didn't show any signs of stopping until it was right in front of her. She told NPR: "Instead of swimming past me, he came right toward me and he didn't stop coming towards me until I was on his head..." All she had with her was a snorkel and a small camera, so she had to stay close to the surface. She was worried it would drag her under, but that was only the beginning...
Maintaining a Safe Distance
Nan knew the smartest thing to do when the whale was close to her was to remain still so she didn't frighten it. She will never touch a sea creature unless it's injured or stranded onshore. However, it was the whale who initiated the contact, not her, and she recalled: “In my head, I was a bit amused since I write Rules and Regulations about whale harassment – and here I was being harassed by a whale…”
This Time She Was Afraid
Suddenly, the whale began acting strangely—it rolled around in the water and nudged her with its head several times. Then, much to her disbelief, it tucked her body under its fin and began to swim closer to the surface. Nan was terrified, but it was impossible to struggle against a 40-ton mammal...
Convinced This Was The End
Nan couldn't believe what was happening. The whale was pushing Nan around with its mouth closed for ten minutes. She recalled, "I was prepared to lose my life. I tried to get away from him for fear that if he rammed me too hard, or hit me with his flippers or tail, that would break my bones and rupture my organs. If he held me under his pectoral fin, I would have drowned."
Trying To Stay Calm
Although Nan was well-known for maintaining her composure around dangerous animals, this encounter was different—she was extremely intimidated by this whale. She did her best to remain calm and to push the thought of this turning into a deadly encounter out of her mind. She couldn't ignore all of the warning signs though, and what the whale did next was completely unexpected...
The Encounter Was Caught On Film
Luckily, Nan's team was on sight while she was swimming with the whale, but they couldn't do anything to help her. She had to ride out the moment and hope for the best. Nan and another cameraman were recording the dive, and the miraculous footage was all recovered. One of the other crew members was new to deep-sea diving and didn't realize just how uncharacteristic this whale's behavior was...
A Hopeless Situation
It seemed obvious that Nan wasn't going to escape this situation. Her crew turned off the aerial cameras they were using to film the encounter in case they ended up accidentally filming her death. Nan continued to make eye contact with the whale and remain as still as possible, but the whale began to push her further away from her crew's boat...
Another Whale Appears
Nan was about to give up entirely and let the whale take her wherever it wanted, but then she saw something coming towards them. A second whale approached them, and it exhibited the same strange behavior. It was slapping its tail against the surface, and it had bruises and barnacles on its body. Something very strange was happening today...
Herd Animals
As the second whale approached Nan, she remembered that they travel in packs. Humpbacks migrate the South Pacific to breed and raise their offspring in the winter. They're always together in order to protect their babies. Nan wasn't sure if this one was another threatening presence or not...
An Overwhelming Scene
Nan was surrounded by two huge whales, both acting incredibly strange. She was still caught precariously between the whale's fin, and she had no way out. She wondered what was causing this odd behavior, and why they'd chosen to latch onto her. From the corner of her eye, she saw more movement...
A Third Creature Approaches
Luckily, the whale saw the third creature as well and lifted its fin to free Nan. However, something about this particular animal was different from the whales. It wasn't moving its tail the same way. It swam using an up-and-down motion, and suddenly, Nan felt a sinking feeling in her stomach...
A Dangerous Tiger Shark
Nan knew immediately that this particular creature was none other than a Tiger Shark, a deadly predator. Tiger Sharks can grow up to 25 feet long and are notorious for attacking humans. While Great White Sharks tend to bite their prey once and then abandon it, Tiger Sharks will continue to attack. Nan was terrified. She was sure this was it...
No Escape
Nan was no longer concerned with the whales surrounding her. Her focus was now completely on the Tiger Shark, and she did the only logical thing she could think of - she swam. She knew the risk, but she didn't have any time to deliberate. The shark was circling, and if she swam behind the whales and towards her boat, she might have a shot at making it back in one piece...
A Moment of Realization
Luckily, Nan and her cameraman made it back to the boat alive. They warned the crew that there was a shark in the water, and as she pulled herself on board, she realized something. As she examined her body for bruises left by the whales, she understood what had happened to her...
Natural Protectors
Humpback whales are known to be natural protectors of the sea. Similarly to how they pulled Nan under their fins, whales are known to do the same thing with seals, dolphins, and other small mammals if they feel there is danger nearby. Nan realized the whales were aware of the shark approaching and did the same thing for her...
Revisiting the Footage
After looking back at the footage captured from that day, Nan realized something."Maybe the shark wasn't going to attack me, but the whale was trying to save my life." She realized how rare that moment was for her, and even though she'd feared for her life, she had a whole new appreciation for the creatures she'd spent several decades studying...
A New Bond
Though the encounter had been terrifying, Nan wasn't discouraged. She'd get back in the water again, but she would always remember to be aware of her surroundings. While back on the boat, the whale who had protected her came up to breach and sprayed some water onto Nan's crew before swimming away. Nan says it was the whale's way of making sure she was still okay...
Once-In-A-Lifetime Footage
Nan admitted that if someone else had told her this miraculous story, she wouldn't have believed them. Even with her scientific background, the entire story seems too outlandish to be true. Upon further research, Nan and her team can neither prove nor disprove that the whale's behavior was necessarily intentional, but it seems like the logical explanation is that the whale knew she was in danger...
A Teachable Moment
Nan hopes that this moment will encourage further conservation efforts towards humpback whales. The more heartwarming stories she shares about her encounters with the whales, the more people will want to preserve them and keep their waters safe. She also said, "I've spent the past 28 years protecting whales, and at the moment, I didn't even realize they were protecting me."
Other Close Calls
Though Nan's story is incredible, it isn't completely unique. Other divers have come close to whales and other marine life unintentionally, and their stories are just as wild...
Which Way Is Up?
One diver recalls a trip they took in Mexico and attempted cave diving for the first time. They said they'd never felt so claustrophobic in their lives. When you dive in a tight space, all of the bubbles gather on top of the cave and look reflective, making it difficult to tell which way is up. It's enough to throw off anyone's vertigo and induce panic, and you have to take a second to breathe and watch which way the bubbles go in order to right yourself.
Close Encounter With a Killer Whale
Two divers were exploring Puget Sound in Washington and were ready to call it a day. As they climbed back on board their boat, one of them saw something swimming underneath the murky water nearby. Suddenly, a pod of Orca whales dart by. Thankfully, the divers weren't stranded in open water. Had they been, they wouldn't have lived to tell the tale...
An Unsuspecting Visitor
One certified scuba diver was snorkeling around a cove on the island of St. Thomas. At one end of the cove, an adult barracuda swam past her and seemed not to notice her presence. Whether it did or not, she swam faster than she ever has in her life to get back to safety. The dangerous predator was one foot from her face!
On a Ledge
Most divers are afraid of sharks when they're out in open water, but not this one. The most terrifying experience this person had was descending a wall of coral. They became so disoriented that they felt like they were just spinning over and over when it couldn't have been more than 30 seconds. Not being able to gauge your surroundings when everything looks the same is one of the biggest risks when diving deep and alone.
A Death Grip
Being careless while diving can lead to a life or death situation. One diver is notorious for teasing sea creatures while he's on the ocean floor. Chasing barracudas, petting sea turtles, and grabbing small eels before they can escape. However, on one particular dive, he took it too far. He reached out to grab a large conch shell, and when he did, a huge octopus tentacle emerged from it and gripped onto his arm. It was a struggle to free himself, and he quickly swam back up to the surface.
Just One Bite
One diver was swimming several feet offshore when a school of Mahi Mahi passed by. Keep in mind - these fish are huge. The school surrounded him as they passed, but suddenly, he felt a tug on his leg. He looked down to realize that a tiger shark was pulling on him! It had ripped the fin off his scuba suit and then swam off, but circled him the whole time. The diver made a beeline for shore and watched the shark the whole time.
Rescue Mission
A rescue diver in the Bahamas had to live through a worst-case scenario rescue mission. While showing other divers around a blue hole in the Caribbean ocean, he realized someone from his team was missing. He doubled back to retrieve the missing person at the bottom of the hole but encountered a school of sharks before he could reach the body. Sadly, the missing diver had been attacked, and the rescue mission failed.
An Eel Attack
One diver was swimming close to a hill and inspecting rocks for a geology assignment. Suddenly, he felt something strike his stomach. Startled, he backed off and all of a sudden an enormous Moray eel sprang out from the rocks and attempted to attack the diver. He recalled that it was easily a couple of meters long and as wide as a grown man's head.
Moon Jellyfish Sting
Did you know it's possible to be allergic to a jellyfish sting? One diver got stung by a moon jellyfish and didn't realize the severity of the sting because he was swimming at night. When you dive deep, you can't see the color red, so he had no idea just how badly his skin was reacting. When he resurfaced, one crewmember waiting for him on the boat said it was the worst sting he'd ever seen.