Mystery whale drops in for a surf at Byron Bay
'I was told they often surf waves in order to lunge feed on krill'
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WHAT whale is that? Is it a Minke, a Bryde's or a rare Omura whale?
Professional photographer Dave Bryant and his wife Miranda volunteer at the Byron Lighthouse on Fridays and he snapped the mystery whale on the 19th of July in the vicinity of the headland.
"I have been photographing whales for quite some time and would estimate this one to be about 5 metres long," Mr Bryant said.
"Originally I speculated that this whale may have been chasing the bait fish, however being a baleen whale they would only feed on krill.
"I was told they often surf waves in order to lunge feed on krill."
Mr Bryant originally put the picture up on social media asking others to confirm what type of whale it was with one Melbourne expert confirming it was an Omura's whale.
Omura's whale are also known as dwarf fin whale a species of of rorqual which are baleen whales.
Not much is known about Omura species whose name commemorates Japanese cetologist Hideo Omura
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