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It can take humans years to learn how to catch a wave and surf elegantly into shore.

But a pod of dolphins has made surfing look incredible easy after more than 100 of the marine mammals rode a wave together.

The amazing overhead footage, which was only able to capture 30 of the creatures at any one time,  was captured off the coast of Western Australia using a drone.

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Wildlife photographer Dave Riggs filmed the scene from above using a remote controlled quadcopter with a camera mounted on it.

He initially set out to film great white sharks, but instead spotted the pod of sociable, playful dolphins surfing near by the city of Esperance.

The filmmaker told Grind TV there were 'well over 100 in the group,' but he was only able to get around 30 in shot in his footage.

While dolphins have been photographed surfing together before - even alongside human surfers - this is thought to be the first time their antics have been captured using a drone.

The video shows the dolphins lining up in the water to wait to catch a wave, much like human surfers.

 

Drone films dozens of wild dolphins surfing together

The amazing sight of the surfing dolphins was captured off the coast of Western Australia, near the town of Esperance (pictured) using a drone

Waiting for the swell, the animals then start to swim and sometimes head back into a wave to jump into the air, before going with the flow again and turning back before they reach the shoreline.

Fellow filmmaker Jennene Riggs said: 'Huge pods of bottlenose dolphins cruise the shoreline, surfing, playing and teaching their young how to forage amongst the crystal clear turquoise waters.

'[They are] such intelligent and playful animals - we have a lot to learn from their lifestyle.'

No-one is certain why dolphins 'surf' and ride waves (stock image) but some experts think it is for fun

According to experts from the Dolphin Communication Project, dolphins are known to ride the crests of waves to head into shore.

'Just before the wave crashes into shore, the dolphins will turn around and rush back into open water. They can even be seen leaping clear out of the water from the top of a wave.'

'The waves and the currents that they create help to push the dolphins along in the water, allowing them to attain fast swimming speeds with minimal effort. This is similar to the way that newborn dolphin calves stick close to their mother's side in order to help them swim.' 

Some scientist think that dolphins 'surf' for pure enjoyment, although this is difficult to prove.

Scientists from the University of Cambridge said dolphins have been documented riding waves created by the bows of boats since ancient Greece.

'They've been doing it for ages and it's the kind of thing that we don't actually know for sure why they do it.'

The experts think the move gives the animals a 'power boost,' but reports of dolphins riding waves to shore, or racing in front of boats for hours, suggests that there is little energetic benefit to them, so they might just enjoy it.

'They might just be having fun - they are deeply intelligent creatures, we know that.  So why not just have some fun and hang out, and you can hear them talking and whistling to each other as they're going.'

Other theories as to why dolphins catch waves are so they can choose a mate and hunt for food.

Say cheese! Wildlife photographer Dave Riggs filmed the scene from above using a remote controlled quadcopter with a camera mounted on it, similar to the one pictured