The whale rose about 5ft above the water, showing a sliver of its back and a cluster of cream coloured barnacles, and then dove back down.

BBC: A wild world off California's coast

Fitted with curved guiderails, the sodbreaker lifted the newly liberated sod cluster and turned it so that the sod ribbon would gently plop upside down, ready for settlers to slice it into individual sections weighing about 100 pounds (45kg) each.

ECONOMIST: Building houses