World News for Students of English

26-10-2016 15:00

In Australia, a mother and humpback whale calf were swimming in the ocean when the calf’s tail became tangled in a shark net. The mother whale stayed with her calf, propping it up above the water, until people arrived to cut the calf free. 

Despite the closeness of the people, the mother stayed with her calf until it was able to swim away.

People are upset about this incident because of the problems with shark nets. Shark nets are intended to catch sharks after they bite people, but the nets also catch other large sea animals that usually cannot escape them and then die.

Difficult words: calf (a baby animal such as a whale), tangle (catch), prop (hold up).

You can watch the original video in the Level 3 section.