Endangered whales ‘hug’ in rare footage

Two critically endangered North Atlantic whales have been spotted embracing each other with their flippers in Cape Cod Bay.

Wildlife photographer Brian Skerry and scientists from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution captured the moment in rare drone footage as the whales interacted.

Scientists say such behaviour is rarely observed and that it may have been the first time a whale hug has been recorded from the air.

North Atlantic right whales are some of the planet’s most endangered animals, with the known population estimated at just 360.