Surfer Almost Swallowed by Whale

A woman floating on a surfboard near Santa Cruz, California almost ended up on the lunch menu for a humpback whale in 2011. Barb Roettger had her camera rolling as two hefty whales popped out of the calm waters not far from the unsuspecting surfer and a pair of kayakers. A pod of humpback whales had been hanging out off the Santa Cruz coast, noshing on anchovies that flock to the area to feed on plankton. The woman found herself in the middle of a frenzy called lunge feeding, which occurs when whales herd anchovies and shoot straight up out of the water with their mouth wide open to catch the fish.