Breaching whale crushes a boat.
Breaching whale crushes a boat.

TOPOLOBAMPO BAY, Mexico – Four tourists, two men and two women, were transported to the hospital after a whale breached and landed on their boat in Topolobampo Bay in Mexico. The original video shows the whale breaching and landing on the boat, but follow up clips, also posted to X (formerly Twitter) show the damage done to the boat.

According to Michelle Frey with the Ocean Conservancy, scientists currently believe that whales breach as a form of communication with other whales. This goes for why the slap their fins and flukes, as well. The full breaches are thought to be long-distant messages, with sound traveling faster underwater than on land.

According to the National Library of Medicine, humpback whales are frequently seen breaching, while some of the largest species of whales, blue whales, fin whales, and sei whales, are rarely spotted breaching.

The Gulf of California, which includes Topolobampo Bay, is home to a host of whales, some permanent, some migratory. Fin whales, bottle nose dolphins, porpoises, blue whales, humpback whales, and gray whales can all be spotted, with the latter three sometimes using the area as their wintering ground. On rare occasions, Pacific right whales can be spotted within the gulf.

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Nolan Deck is a writer for Unofficial Networks, covering skiing and outdoor adventure. After growing up and skiing in Maine, he moved to the Denver area for college where he continues to live and work...