A seal is seen 'shaking hands' with a scuba diver in a delightful video that was filmed off the coast of Northumberland in England. The video features Ben Burville, a medical doctor and underwater cameraman, interacting with the seal.
In the video shared on YouTube on Tuesday, the playful grey seal approaches Mr Burville and appears to hold his hand.
WATCH: A playful gray seal appears to ‘shake hands' with an underwater cameraman pic.twitter.com/h0TjESnnoI
— Reuters Top News (@Reuters) July 31, 2019
"To those who may be critical of any contact, please understand that the seal is 100% in control of any underwater encounters," Mr Burville said while sharing the video.
The seal even stays back to enjoy a few pets - something that has made social media go "aww".
Awwwww, I'd let him shake me. ❤️
— 🤜 The Fisties 🤛 (@TheFisties) July 31, 2019
awwww...cuuute https://t.co/ZP4uetiqhb
— Summer Knowles (@WESH2SummerK) July 31, 2019
It's not the first time Ben Burville has 'shook hands' with a seal. According to Fox News, he has been observing and filming grey seals for around 20 years.
"The front flippers of the seal can grasp much like a human hand," Mr Burville wrote almost six years ago, while sharing a similar video of a seal holding his hand on YouTube.
While Mr Burville makes contacts with seals and even likens them to underwater dogs, he warns other divers against touching them. He points out that they have powerful jaws and sharp teeth that can be dangerous.
What do you think of the video? Let us know using the comments section.
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