The world’s rarest whale has turned up dead in New Zealand and may be the first specimen to be dissected by scientists.
Only six shovel-toothed beaked whales have been discovered since the 1800s, and all were found dead.
3
The mysterious five-meter-long creature has never been seen alive in the wild.
Scientists have also never found a specimen so fresh that it could be dissected.
The first intact specimen ever discovered was a mother and calf stranded in New Zealand’s Bay of Plenty in 2010.
Another stranding in 2017 near Gisborne, a city on the North Island, gave researchers yet another specimen.
New video released by AP shows the whale being lifted from the sand by a digger on a beach near Tairai Mouth, located on New Zealand’s South Island, earlier this month.
The whale was then quickly transported to cold storage for preservation.
Sword-Toothed Beaked Whales: Everything We Know
Little is known about shovel-toothed beaked whales, also called Mesoplodon traversii.
This is because few specimens have been found and no live sightings have been recorded.
The creature is classified as data deficient in the New Zealand Threat Classification System.
Although we don’t know much, scientists suspect that beaked whales are exceptionally deep divers.
They spend most of their time far below the surface, hunting squid and small fish, far from human intervention.
The creatures are also believed to be native to the southern Pacific Ocean.
And thanks to this latest specimen, we can now identify their color patterns, the shape of their skulls, beaks and teeth.
But exactly what they eat, how many there are, or even where they live in the South Pacific Ocean remains a mystery.
Although it appears to be a whale with a swordtooth beak, scientists have not yet confirmed its species through genetic sampling.
His DNA has been sent to the University of Auckland for testing, which is expected to take several weeks to complete.
If confirmed, Department of Conservation (DOC) Coastal Otago operations manager Gabe Davies said it would be a “huge” discovery.
“Sword-toothed whales are one of the most little-known large mammal species of modern times,” explained Davies.
“Since 1800, only six samples have been documented worldwide, and all but one were from New Zealand.
“From a scientific and conservation perspective, this is huge.”
We know very little, practically nothing.
Hannah Hendriks, DOC Maritime Technical Advisor
Hannah Hendriks, marine technical advisor at DOC, said: “We know very little, virtually nothing” about the creatures.
“This will lead to incredible science and world-first information.”
Te Rūnanga ō Ōtakou president Nadia Wesley-Smith says rūnaka, a Māori council, will partner with DOC on its latest breakthrough.
“It is important to ensure that appropriate respect for this taoka is demonstrated through the shared journey of learning, applying Māori mātauraka as we discover more about this rare species,” she said.
3
Learn more about science
Want to know more about the weird and wonderful world of science? From the Moon to the human body, we have everything you need…
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
