whales

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Scientists Rejoice Over an 'Extraordinary' Whale

Near-perfectly preserved spade-toothed whale, the world's rarest, is being dissected in New Zealand

(Newser) - It's the world's rarest whale, with only seven of its kind ever spotted. Almost nothing is known about the enigmatic species. But on Monday, a small group of scientists and cultural experts in New Zealand clustered around a near-perfectly preserved spade-toothed whale hoping to decode decades of mystery....

New Zealanders Save Stranded Whales With Sheets

Rescuers lift more than 30 pilot whales on sheets, refloat them

(Newser) - More than 30 pilot whales that stranded themselves on a beach in New Zealand were safely returned to the ocean after conservation workers and residents helped to refloat them by lifting them on sheets. Four of the pilot whales died, New Zealand's conservation agency said. New Zealand is a...

In This River, Thousands of 'Social Butterflies'

Thousands of playful belugas frolic along Canada's Churchill River—and are now key to area's tourism

(Newser) - Playful large white beluga whales bring joy and healing to Hudson Bay. Their happy chirps leap out in an environment and economy threatened by the warming water that's melting sea ice, starving polar bears, and changing the entire food chain. Loud and curious belugas swarm boats here, clicking, nudging,...

Norway Says It Knows How Alleged 'Spy' Whale Died

Beluga who lived off coast of Norway succumbed to bacterial infection, police say

(Newser) - A beluga whale that lived off Norway's coast, and whose harness ignited speculation that it was a Russian spy , wasn't shot to death as claimed by animal rights groups but died of a bacterial infection, Norwegian police said Friday. A final autopsy by Norway's Veterinary Institute "...

Popular Whale Rumored to Be 'Russian Spy' Is Dead
We Now Know How the
'Russian Spy' Whale Died
UPDATED
Sep 10, 2024 9:35 AM CDT

We Now Know How the 'Russian Spy' Whale Died

Kind of—beluga known as Hvaldimir had a stick stuck in its mouth, per Norwegian police

(Newser) - On Monday, Norwegian police said they'd found zero evidence that supposed "Russian spy" whale Hvaldimir, found dead in Norway's waters last month, had been shot to death, as some animal rights activists had alleged, per the AP . Now, an answer on the marine creature's premature demise:...

Story About RFK Jr., Dead Whale Causes Uproar

Claim that he once cut a whale's head off with a chainsaw first surfaced in 2012

(Newser) - The strange stories allegedly about Robert F. Kennedy Jr. keep coming. The latest involves a whale carcass, and was originally reported more than a decade ago, but just resurfaced, the New York Times reports. Back in 2012, Kennedy's daughter, Kick Kennedy, told Town & Country her father had...

A Whale of a Security Breach at Olympic Surfing Semis

A literal whale makes a literal breach

(Newser) - The Paris Olympics surfing competition in Tahiti has yielded some bonkers photos , but with all eyes on the ocean during the final day of competition on Monday afternoon, a surprise guest made an appearance for one more: a whale. A safe distance from athletes Tatiana Weston-Webb from Brazil and Brisa...

Whale That Washed Up on Beach Could Be World's Rarest

Precious little is known about the spade-toothed whale

(Newser) - Spade-toothed whales are the world's rarest, with no live sightings ever recorded. No one knows how many there are, what they eat, or even where they live in the vast expanse of the southern Pacific Ocean. However, scientists in New Zealand may have finally caught a break, reports the...

It Was 'Likely the Most Complex Marine Mammal Rescue Ever'

2 beluga whales moved from war-torn eastern Ukraine to new home in Spain

(Newser) - War has costs for whales, too. Indeed, two beluga whales held at an aquarium in Kharkiv, eastern Ukraine, were considered unlikely to survive Russia's bombing of the region—until animal lovers thousands of miles away found a way to help them. The two whales—a 15-year-old male named Plombir...

The Takeaway From Orca Boat Strikes: 'It's a Game'
The Takeaway From Orca
Boat Strikes: 'It's a Game'
NEW STUDY
May 28, 2024 11:16 AM CDT

The Takeaway From Orca Boat Strikes: 'It's a Game'

With full bellies, bored juveniles find fun in the risky play of bumping boats: study

(Newser) - Killer whales known to ram and sink boats off the Iberian Peninsula aren't bent on destroying humans. Rather, they're likely bored teenagers who find ship rudders incredibly entertaining, according to a new report from more than a dozen orca experts who sought to explain hundreds of boat strikes...

There's a Move to Get Lonely Beluga Out of 'Unethical' Home

Animal rights activists are fighting for release of Bella, housed in a shopping mall aquarium in Seoul

(Newser) - Efforts have kicked up again to "free Bella," a beluga whale housed in an aquarium in a South Korean shopping mall. Bella was caught in 2013 at the tender age of 2 in the Arctic Ocean, off the coast of Russia, and along with two other male belugas...

Japan Shops a New, Vulnerable Species for Its Whale Hunt

(Newser) - Commercial whaling in Japan could soon expand to include a fourth species—one already considered vulnerable. Japan currently allows hunting of the Bryde's whale, minke whale, and endangered sei whale in the North Pacific. It's now considering adding a fourth eligible species: fin whales. The fin whale, up...

Cruise Ship Sails Into NYC With Dead Whale Across Bow

Endangered sei whale was sent to NJ for necropsy

(Newser) - A cruise ship sailed into a New York City port with a 44-foot dead whale across its bow, marine authorities said. The whale, identified as an endangered sei whale, was caught on the ship's bow when it arrived at the Port of Brooklyn on Saturday, National Oceanic and Atmospheric...

Dead Whale in New Jersey Had Fractured Skull

Blunt force trauma is the cause of death, though the cause of it isn't clear

(Newser) - A post-mortem examination of a whale that washed ashore on New Jersey's Long Beach Island found that the animal had sustained numerous blunt force injuries including a fractured skull and vertebrae, per the AP . The Marine Mammal Stranding Center on Friday released observations from a necropsy done on the...

Clock Is Ticking on Rescue of This Stranded Young Orca

Killer whale calf is stuck in lagoon off Vancouver Island, Canada, with its food supply dwindling

(Newser) - Plans are underway to rescue a stranded killer whale calf out of a remote tidal lagoon off northern Vancouver Island in an effort to reunite the young female orca with its extended family, Canadian authorities said Wednesday, per the AP .
  • Stranded: Rescuers have been unable to coax the young whale,
...

Sperm Whales Employ a Stinky Defense Against Orcas

Witnesses saw the whales use an enormous cloud of poop to fend off attack

(Newser) - Orcas have been known to pick fights with everything from sharks to yachts , but a pod in Western Australia recently learned the hard way that they should really leave sperm whales alone. Off the state's southern coast, viewers on a whale-watching tour following the orcas realized the creatures were...

Whales Just Gained Personhood Here
Whales Just Gained
Personhood Here
Apr 2, 2024 12:26 PM CDT

Whales Just Gained Personhood Here

Polynesian Indigenous groups sign treaty they hope will lead to greater protections

(Newser) - Whales are people, too, according to the Indigenous leaders of New Zealand, Tahiti, and the Cook Islands, who've acted to bestow personhood on whales. New Zealand's Maori and other Indigenous groups from Polynesia signed a treaty that recognizes all whales as legal persons as part of an effort...

Beached Sperm Whale Off Florida Couldn't Be Saved

The 44-foot male appeared underweight

(Newser) - A sperm whale that became famous after beaching itself on a sandbar along Florida's Gulf Coast died Monday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said in a statement. As the AP reports, police and wildlife officials began trying to free the male whale from the shallow sandbar off...

'Incredibly Rare' Whale Sighting Made Off East Coast

Gray whale went extinct in the Atlantic centuries ago

(Newser) - The gray whale went extinct in the Atlantic Ocean more than 200 years ago—so researchers from the New England Aquarium were more than a little surprised to see one off the coast of Nantucket on Friday. The whale was spotted by an aerial survey plane around 30 miles from...

How a Cushion of Fat Helps Whales Sing

Researchers may have figured out how baleen whales vocalize

(Newser) - Whales sing loud enough that their songs travel through the ocean, but knowing the mechanics behind that has been a mystery. Scientists now think they have an idea, and it's something not seen in other animals: a specialized voice box. Experts say the discovery, while based on a study...

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