Clark Miller's Image

The arrival of a pod of false killer whales scuppered Clark's plan to observe sperm whales in Dominica.

Even though the false killers are only 5.5 to 4.5 metres long compared to the enormous sperm whale, they spooked the sperm whales, which disappeared. To make the most of the special permit he'd organized Clark concentrated on the false killers. 'They're normally very cautious,' he says, 'and seldom approach divers,' which is why close-up photos are rare. But these whales found something fascinating about Clark, stopping just a couple of metres away. This time it was Clark who was nervous. Then in the mélange, he saw the dolphin. Scientists have long known bottlenose dolphins sometimes associate with false killer whales, but this is almost certainly the first time the relationship has been photographed.