'Amazing' moment minke whale caught on camera off North East coast

• Video by Tony Wealleans

The "amazing" moment a whale was spotted breaching the water in the North Sea was caught on camera from a fishing vessel.

Tony Wealleans, who was on board the Blueye 2 on Sunday afternoon, filmed the animal breaching the water and crashing back down.

The minke whale was spotted off the North East coast, six miles east of the Tyne.

Describing it as "amazing", Mr Wealleans, who posted his video on social media, said: "In all the years I've been going to sea, I've never seen anything like this."

The Northern minke whale, most often referred to as the minke whale in the UK, is found in most of the oceans in the northern hemisphere.

They are smaller than the other baleen whales found in UK seas, according to the Wildlife Trusts.

They are generally spotted alone or in small feeding groups feasting on schools of fish or krill.

Adults reach between seven and nine metres and are described as having a sleek, dark grey body and a tall sickle-shaped fine that curves backwards.

They can be spotted in the near-shore waters around the UK, though they are rare in the English Channel and Southern North Sea, below Bridlington.

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