Whale's 'breath-taking' breach stuns fisherman

A fisherman says he was left in "complete shock" after a humpback whale unexpectedly performed a "breath-taking" breach next to his boat in the sea off Devon.

Tristan Northway is a working fisherman and offers tours of the sea around Brixham in Torbay through his business Mr Fish Marine Adventures.

He said the whale breached "out of nowhere directly in front of the boat" while he was on his way back to port after watching a pod of Risso's dolphins.

Northway said: "It was genuinely one of the most breathtaking wildlife encounters I've ever experienced at sea."

"My immediate reaction was complete shock," he said.

"I turned to look at my passengers, who were just frozen, staring in disbelief."

In 2025, Police warned people to be responsible when watching marine wildlife in the sea around Devon and to keep at least 100m (328ft) away from whales and other marine wildlife.

Devon Wildlife Trust Marine Awareness Office Coral Smith said humpbacks were now a "fairly common" sight and the whale in the video looked like a juvenile.

Smith warned all watercraft should maintain a safe and respectful distance away from marine mammals.

"Whales, dolphins and porpoises are legally protected and is therefore illegal to intentionally or recklessly disturb them," she said.

"Anyone who observes harassment should call the police.

She added: "You can see in one video the humpback became briefly entangled in creel line.

"Unfortunately this is another all too common threat, particularly for humpbacks."

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