Beluga Playing Fetch In Viral Video Confirmed To Be So-Called 'Russian Spy Whale'

A beluga playing with a rugby ball in a viral video earlier this month has been confirmed to be Hvaldimir, a whale spotted near Norway in April and suspected by some of escaping the Russian military.

Yes, we can officially confirm it is Hvaldimir, said a statement to HuffPost from the Hvaldimir Foundation, an initiative of the nonprofit Norwegian Orca Survey dedicated to monitoring the famous Hvaldimir (although he is not an orca).

The viral video shows a person leaning over the side of a boat and tossing a rugby ball in the general direction of a beluga whale. The whale then brings back the ball as someone can be heard saying, Thats crazy, yeah?

Its not immediately clear who originally posted the video, which has been reposted numerous times on Facebook , Twitter and Reddit.

No big deal; just a guy playing fetch with a beluga whale... pic.twitter.com/PdSNgVABIu

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No big deal; just a guy playing fetch with a beluga whale... pic.twitter.com/PdSNgVABIu
Steve Stewart-Williams (@SteveStuWill) November 7, 2019

Some scientists and science journalists who saw the video immediately suspected the beluga was Hvaldimir, who has been observed retrieving objects dropped by humans before.

And while some people claimed the video had been shot in Antarctica, biologist Jackie Hilderling determined it was likely filmed on a boat currently in Norwegian waters . (She also pointed out that belugas only live in Arctic seas, making it next-to-impossible the video was filmed in Antarctica.)

Hvaldimir first made international headlines earlier this year after he approached fisherman near Hammerfest, Norway. The whale was wearing a tight harness that featured a camera mount and had the words Equipment St. Petersburg on it.