An incredible video is going viral this week showing the moment a giant manta ray approached a diver and effectively asked him for help after being injured by fishing hooks.

Local tourguide Jake Wilton was snorkeling in the Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia when the manta ray approached him. Had he not been there to help, the injuries that the manta ray suffered could have led to infection, blindness, and death.

“That manta absolutely understood what was going on,” said Monty Halls, a marine biologist who was on the boat at the time. “Jake went down again and again and she just remained still for him.”

“I’m often guiding snorkelers in the area and it’s as if she recognised me and was trusting me to help her,” Jake explained. “She got closer and closer and then started unfurling to present the eye to me. I knew we had to get the hooks out or she would have been in big trouble. I went for a few dives down to see how she’d react to me being close to her. The manta stayed completely still in the water.”

Marine biologists have been totally amazed by the behavior exhibited by this manta ray.

“It’s pretty incredible behaviour if this is what happened,” said David Boyle, marine biologist and university lecturer. “It’s not uncommon for animals – generally mammals – to interact with divers but for one in distress to seek out assistance would be novel indeed.”

Check out the amazing video for yourself below!