Terrifying drone footage showed the moment one of Earth's most fearsome predators hunted down a whale three times its size.
It was the first time a great white shark had been filmed killing a humpback whale and the footage was captured off the coast of South Africa by research coordinator for Blue Wilderness Research Ryan Johnson in July 2020.
Ryan told The Times: "The shark was very strategic about it, there was no hesitation, it was as if she knew exactly how to go about it.
"The first strike was at the whale's tail, the skinny part above the flukes where she could get her mouth all the way around. She managed to open a vein and blood immediately started pluming out."
The research coordinator caught the footage on film after the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) was informed about the stricken whale trapped in a net.
What appeared to be a long, drawn out and tactical attack by the 13-foot shark caused Ryan to have to change his drone's battery six times.
The shark made an initial attack and waited for the whale to bleed out, becoming gradually weaker, before it resumed its assault around 30 minutes later and pulled the whale under the surface. It took a total of 50 minutes for the whale to meet its eventual demise, as its blowhole could no longer access the air above.
Marine researchers named the whale attacker 'Helen', who seemed to be "informed" about how she would go about attacking the desperate whale.
He said: "Helen looked very informed about what she was doing, which made me curious about whether she was an experienced whale killer, was acting on instinct or on plain intelligence by detecting her prey was weak."
Great white sharks are feared due to their large size, powerful jaws with rows of sharp teeth and ability to swim fast. They can prey on most ocean creatures including large whales and are known to happily attack vulnerable humans.
The size of a whale is another matter that can often deter sharks from attacking them as a lash from their large tails can cause nasty damage.
Ryan added: "From everything I found, this was really the first verified report of a shark successfully killing a live whale.
"I think… this behaviour is very rare and requires a number of aspects to all come together to be possible. A weak whale passing through a great white hot spot, and then a large and confident great white encountering it."
