雅虎香港電視

A large elephant seal chased a great white shark away from a Cape fur seal colony at the Robberg Nature Reserve in Robberg, South Africa, on September 21, according to a young photographer.

Luka Oosthuizen, a 14-year-old surfer and aspiring nature photographer, recorded this footage while at the reserve. Mariella Rossi, Luka’s mother, told Storyful her son went out on this particular day intending to film great white sharks near the seal colony.

“While filming, he realized that something the size of one of the underwater boulders was moving and chased the shark,” she said. “This elephant seal apparently frequents our bay around seal-calving season and has been given the name Solo by residents!”

The footage shows a shark shape approaching the Cape fur seals, when a large shadow comes into frame and moves toward the shark. Rossi said the shadow is Solo charging at the shark and successfully chasing it away from the colony.

Solo has become a popular tourist attraction. According to Plettenberg Bay Tourism, he is the “only annual elephant seal visitor.” The tourism agency posted an additional video showing the massive animal relaxing in the shallow water on a more mellow day. Credit: Luka Oosthuizen via Storyful