WHALE AND SHARK

Greymouth Evening Star, 10 November 1931, Page 3

WHALE AND SHARK

A FREE SPECTACLE. [PEE press association.] WELLINGTON, November 9. Tho exciting and unusual sight of a fight between a thrasher shark and a whalo was seen between Mana Island and Plimmerton, by Mr. H. B. France, of Plimmerton, who says that the whalo was a large one, and it evidently was hard pressed. The whale frequently sliot out of the water and dropped back with a great splash and an audible crash. Sometimes its great flukes rose into the air and descended with a, smack on the water as it tried to cripple the thrasher. Now and again the tail of tho thrasher came out to whip round and struck like a flail. Sometimes the struggle gave the impression of a sea serpent with the nose and the long back of the whale above the surface, and the sinuous tail of the thrasher apparently adding length to it. The fight continued for about an hour. Sometimes the whale sounded, but it kept mostly on the surface. It was blowing frequently and was making a larger cloud of vapour than usual. No finality apparently was reached while they were in sight. A few days after the first fight, what seemed to bo the same combatants, were again seen moving south, between North Head and Mona Island. This encounter was described by Mr. J. Foster, who saw it from a launch close up, as a great and very exciting struggle.