Moment giant fin whale’s huge mouth engulfs thousands of tonnes of water

Videographer Rhys Morgan captured a fin whale feeding off the Pembrokeshire coast, its huge mouth taking in water and prey. The rare coastal sighting matters because fin whales are elusive open-ocean animals, and little is known about their migration.

The whale’s expandable throat pleats can hold up to 18,000 gallons of water and krill as it feeds. Fin whales can reach 24 metres long and weigh up to 70 tonnes; they eat krill, small fish and squid, consuming as much as 2,000 kilograms of food a day. A Bangor University marine ecologist described the encounter as rare and fortunate.