Stealthy Seal Slaps Kayaker’s Face with an Octopus

Taiyo Masuda is a film-maker, and was recently kayaking with a friend. However, their trip took an odd turn when a seal swam right up to him, and slapped him across the face with a rather large octopus.

It sounds like something we’ve made up, but play the video above to see it for yourself! The bizarre turn of events was captured using the new GoPro HERO7 camera off of the South Island in New Zealand.

“We were kayaking in the winter NZ Kaikoura, beautiful day, seals were swimming and enjoying the sun on the rocks,” Masuda told PetaPixel. “Right around lunchtime, several seals started to swim around. We just thought they were refreshing their body [sic], yet apparently they were seeking more food.

“One seal swims right next to us, having an octopus in his mouth, pops right up of the surface next to us, then tries to chew up the leg but ended up slapping our face! Such a raw moment — it brought so much laughter to all of us all day long… What a day to remember!”

The “assault” happens at around 17-seconds into the video. It’s really worth checking this out!