It helps to have big friends.
A marine biologist benefited from a friendly humpback whale that shielded her from a 15-foot tiger shark in the South Pacific.
At first, Nan Hauser figured the 25-ton whale she met face-to-face in the Cook Islands was pushing her around. Then she saw the shark.
It happened back in October, but Hauser didn't upload the video until Monday. (It's hard to see it in the video, but trust us. It happens about the 1:40 mark.)
Hauser told the Portland Press Herald that whales are "altruistic" and are known to hide seals from predators. But she said she's never experienced or heard about a whale protecting a human.
"If someone told me the story, I wouldn't believe it," she said.
The Brunswick resident said she was oblivious to the shark during the tense, 10-minute encounter. The whale started to nudge her, and appeared to push her with its head. The animal also appeared to shield her with its pectoral fin.
She suffered some bruises and scratches from the encounter, but was otherwise unscathed. She said that after she swam back to her boat, the whale surfaced nearby as if to check on her.
James Sulikowski, a marine biologist and professor at the University of New England who has studied tiger sharks, said he's not convinced that the whale saved her life. "The shark could have just been hanging around," he said. "There's really no way of knowing the whale's motivation."
Sulikowski is also a killjoy. We're choosing to believe the whale saved her.
Disney? Got a movie comin?
And that reminds us ...
(h/t Associated Press)