Humpback Whale Accidentally Almost Swallows Seal in Shocking Photo: 'A Sight to See'

A seal is lucky to be alive after it was accidentally swallowed by a humpback whale!

A group of sightseers got more than they bargained for while on an excursion with Blue Kingdom Whale and Wildlife Tours in Washington on Thursday, Sept. 12. As the tourists traveling from Anacortes, Wash. were observing a humpback whale named Zillion in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, they saw the mammal mistakenly add a new dish to its diet.

“During our full day tour on Thursday, we had a wild moment when a humpback whale accidentally slurped up a Harbor seal! Naturalist Brooke captured the moment,” Blue Kingdom Whale and Wildlife Tours wrote on their Facebook account. 

Included in their post was the shot Brooke Casanova caught — which showed the large whale scooping up the seal as it breached the water’s surface.

“Wow! Once in a lifetime sight for your passengers and maybe for you too,” one person commented on the Facebook post. Another wrote, “Love this! Education with amazing photos. Thank you for sharing.”

Pacific Whale Watch Association executive director Erin Gless told KING5 it is likely that the harbor seal was also feeding on fish at the time, and "just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time."

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Seals would not be part of a humpback whale’s diet, as they filter-feed on small crustaceans (mostly krill) and small fish, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). 

Even if a humpback whale were to become curious, its small throat would not allow the mammal to eat anything the size of a seal. 

“Humpback whales eat small fish and krill, NOT seals. While they have very large mouths, their throats are roughly the size of a grapefruit, so they can't swallow something as large as a seal,” Gless told KOMO News. 

“We occasionally see humpback whales get small birds stuck in their mouths while feeding, but a seal was a huge surprise,” the executive director added. 

According to both news stations, the seal swam away thanks to Zillion lowering her mount into the water. 

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Blue Kingdom Whale and Wildlife Tours often shares their sightseeing recaps on their website, and document memorable trips.

In August, the company shared that they had an “extraordinarily epic year for killer whale sightings.” They added, “This week we saw orcas on all 11 trips.”

But Blue Kingdom Whale and Wildlife Tours had a particularly busy Thursday. 

After first rescuing “a Turkey Vulture [that was] stuck in the water very far offshore” with “waterlogged” wings, they came across Zillion. 

“The second incredible moment we witnessed happened when a humpback whale ended up with a harbor seal in its mouth!” the company wrote on their website. 

“We were watching a humpback whale named ‘Zillion’ lunge feed through many bait balls in the area. On one particular lunge, afterwards we noticed the whale kept opening and closing its mouth, which we found a bit odd. Upon further inspection of photos, we saw that it had a Harbor seal in its mouth it accidentally engulfed while going after the baitfish. Zillion was able safely ‘cough’ out the harbor seal. It was a sight to see and a crazy photograph that Brooke was able to capture.”