Baby whale in dramatic rescue from shark net (video)

A baby whale has been freed from a shark net in a dramatic rescue in Australia.

The calf was caught in the ropes of Soldier's Beach, on the New South Wales central coast.

See also: Baby humpback whale rescued after two days stuck on Gold Coast beach

See also: Whale stranded for seven hours on Auckland beach rescued

A specialist team, including members from the National Parks and Wildlife Service and the Department of Industries, was sent in from Sydney to help the animal.

Laurence Orel from the National Parks and Wildlife Service, told ABC News: "These sort of operations may sound very simple but they can be very challenging when you are dealing with very distressed, very large animals and obviously sea conditions can be very dangerous."

Indeed, whale expert Ronnie Ling, of marine mammal rescue organisation ORRCA watched on as the crews from the battled strong winds and dangerous surf conditions to try and release the calf.

The mother was also nearby, which made the rescue more dangerous. However, one rescuer said the mother was not so much aggressive, but rather more concerned with protecting her baby and pushing her up to keep her afloat.

However, Wyong Council lifeguard Scott Higgins said the moment he was nearly hit by the calf's breaching mother was "the scariest thing I've even seen in my entire life".

Speaking to the Australian, Mr Ling said of the rescue: "I am bloody ecstatic. This could have so easily gone pear-shaped.

"We don't know how long the calf was stuck there. But there was a real possibility of the calf drowning and its condition would have been deteriorating as it struggled in the water."

The incident has reignited the issue of using shark nets, with many critics blasting them.

Speaking to the Australian Daily Telegraph, marine environmental campaigner Cathy Gilmore slammed the use of the 150m-long nets, which she described as "useless", adding: "The problem with nets is they don't just kill sharks, but harm other marine life as well."

Gilmore advocates new technology, known as Eco Shark Barriers, developed by a West Australian couple, Craig and Leanne Moss.

The rescue comes as marine experts actually met this week at a shark summit to discuss ways to manage sharks on Central Coast beaches.

See pictures from another whale rescue in Australia below: