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