Isabel Ender described her recent week-long diving adventure with dwarf minke whales as “absolutely magical,” and the accompanying video reveals why. The small cetacean performs a virtual ballet in front of the camera and other divers.

Ender, a marine biology student in Cairns, Australia, was on a group trip to dive spots near Cooktown, off Queensland, with Mike Ball Dive Expeditions.

Dwarf minke whales reach lengths up to about 24 feet and are genetically distinct from the slightly larger Antarctic minke whale.

They’re also highly curious at times.

“When you see them in real life, it’s totally unpredictable because they’re these big, beautiful animals that have something incredibly gentle about them,” Enders told the Cairns Post. “Some of them became really interested and come up to you and then they stop, turn around and show their belly.”

Dwarf minke whales, which as a sub-species do not yet have a scientific name, are found only in the southern hemisphere and have been documented off Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, New Caledonia and the eastern coast of South America.

Enders, a marine biology student at James Cook University, is studying dwarf minke whale behavioral patterns, and presumably she jotted down that at least one of them likes to pirouette.

MORE ON GRINDTV
- WHALES: Southern right whales off Argentina face unlikely enemy in voracious seagulls
- SHARKS: Australian freedivers fend off great white with spearguns, knives (video)
- ORCAS: Crafty seal uses fishing boat to escape attacking orcas