A brave diver saved a 'frightened' giant sperm whale that he has 'known' for a decade - by slashing through ropes that had become wrapped around its lower jaw and anchored to the bottom of the ocean.

After Hugues Vitry heard about a tired whale dragging a line of buoys eight miles off Mauritius on May 15, he knew he had to help the stranded animal, which he had been following since it was born in 2011.

Hugues jumped into the water alongside the 10 metre long giant and quickly spotted its jaw was entangled with rope that disappeared more than 2,000 metres to the Indian Ocean floor - dragging the poor creature's mouth wide open.

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