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☆ ‘A really stocky, powerful-looking little animal:’ Scientists are gaining precious clues about the world’s rarest whale
▼ + stars: | 2024-12-10 | by ( Lex Harvey | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

“I immediately went, ‘Oh my goodness, it’s a spade-toothed whale!’” the senior marine science adviser for New Zealand’s Department of Conservation (DOC) told CNN. The spade-toothed whale is the world’s rarest, only seven of its species have ever been recorded. Beaked whale expert Anton van Helden inspects a male spade-toothed whale ahead of a dissection at Invermay Agricultural Centre, Mosgiel, near Dunedin, New Zealand, on December 2, 2024. Derek Morrison/APSome of the world’s finest whale scientists, alongside members of the local Māori community, gathered last week in New Zealand to dissect the 16-foot, 3,000-pound, mammal — marking the first time anyone has ever seen inside a spade-toothed whale. The spade-toothed whale is a member of the beaked whale family, which gets its name for its “dolphin-like” snouts, according to the DOC.

Persons: Anton van Helden, ”, It’s, Derek Morrison, Alexander Werth, Joy Reidenberg, Michael Denk, van Helden, they’ve, Tumai Cassidy, Te, ” Cassidy, “, Ōtākou, ” Kane Fleury, Helden Organizations: CNN, New Zealand’s Department of Conservation, Agricultural, AP, “, Tūhura Otago Museum Locations: Mosgiel, Dunedin , New Zealand, New Zealand, Pitt, Chile, Plenty, Gisborne

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. The list of what scientists don’t know about spade-toothed whales is longer than what they do know. A rare spade-toothed whale washed ashore on New Zealand's south island in July. It’s thought that spade-toothed whales live in the vast Southern Pacific Ocean, home to some of the world’s deepest ocean trenches. Beaked whales are the ocean’s deepest divers for food, and the spade-toothed may rarely surface, adding to its mystery.

Persons: ”, Anton van Helden, Van Helden, they’ve, don’t, van Helden, Chile’s Robinson, Tumai Cassidy, Rūnanga, “, ” Cassidy, Joy Reidenberg Organizations: New Zealand Department of Conservation, Getty, Department of Conservation, Māori, Southern, Icahn School of Medicine Locations: New Zealand, —, New, AFP, Dunedin, Zealand, Māori , New, Ocean, Mount Sinai, New York

☆ Has ‘world’s rarest whale’ washed up on a beach? Scientists are scrambling to find out
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-16 | by ( Isaac Yee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Now, experts in New Zealand are scrambling to confirm whether a 5-meter (16-foot) carcass that recently washed ashore on the country’s South Island is the near-mythical spade-toothed whale. After inspection and consultation with marine-mammal experts, scientists believed the carcass was that of a male spade-toothed whale, though more tests were needed. It may take several weeks or months for the DNA to be processed and a final species ID to be confirmed, according to New Zealand’s conservation department. If the carcass is confirmed as a spade-toothed whale and dissected, Hendriks from the DOC said scientists will be very interested in details of its its stomach and gastrointestinal tract. “This can tell us about what the whale has been eating, but it is also significant because every beaked whale species has a unique stomach plan,” she said.

Persons: CNN —, it’ll, ”, Hannah Hendriks, Gabe Davies, ” Davies, Nadia Wesley, Smith, Te, “ Organizations: CNN, New Zealand’s Department of Conservation, Coastal Otago, RNZ, University of Auckland Locations: New Zealand, ”, Zealand, Te Rūnanga, Pitt, of Plenty, Gisborne

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