This is the amazing moment a killer whale leaps out of the sea to perform an acrobatic flip in front of thrilled tourists.
The six tonne mammal was one of dozens spotted off the coast of Seahouses in Northumberland.
Holidaymakers were left stunned when a pod of around 30 orcas followed the Billy Shiel Farne Islands boat tour along the coast on Saturday (30/5).
Eagle-eyed crew member Jake Tiffin was filming the giant animals, which can measure up to 32ft long, when one suddenly leapt out of the water.
In the clip the killer whale can be seen breaching the surface and becoming momentarily airborne before crashing back down into the sea.
It is believed to be one of the largest pods of orcas ever seen off the Northumberland coast.
Jake, 19, said: “This is extremely rare, before last year they weren’t sighted for 40 to 50 years.
“We do our usual routes around the islands where there are some famous pinnacle rocks where the seabirds nest.
“We noticed some movement in the water a few hundred metres away.
“A customer got some binoculars out and said he could see fins.
I had a look and they were massive.
We were thought they were dolphins at first.
“As we got closer we realised they were orcas, which was insane.
“It looked like there were two or three initially, but we actually think there were 20 to 30 which is the biggest ever seen in Northumberland.
They just kept coming up, it was amazing.
“All these orcas came up out the water and we noticed some massive bulls which can weigh around six tonnes.
I jumped up on the wheelhouse view and recorded as much as I possibly could.
“I was about to stop recording when I heard one orca surface to breathe, and I managed to get the amazing jump.
“To see a creature that big jumping out of the water is mental, it must have been ten or 15 metres in length – clearly showing off.
“We were nearly 100m away from them, but they were moving towards us.
My friend’s cousin was in an orange rib last year and there was an orca under the rib.
He said he was terrified.”
Wildlife experts say the orcas are attracted to the huge colony of 6,000 seals and seabirds living on and around the Farne Islands.
Jake, an engineering student, added: “There were literally all over the boat.
As we approached them we saw some calves doing barrel roles in the water.
“They were popping there head out of the water to take a look at us.”
Orcas travel in pods numbering up to 100 whales for survival and hunting.
Pods can often be seen working together to hunt prey, most famously using their size and weight to trap seals.
