This is the first specimen of a spadetooth whale that appears in a suitable condition for dissecting and learning more about this species.
The Spadetooth whales Most of them Rare in the worldSince no registration is done Looking alive. No one knows how many people live in the vast expanse of the South Pacific Ocean, what they eat, and where they live.
However, New Zealand scientists may have finally made a step forward: National Defense Agency He announced this Monday that it is believed that The creature that appeared This month A South Island Beach It could be a spade-toothed whale.
creature, Five meters long and a type of beaked whale, identified after its arrival on the Otago coast by its color patterns and the shape of its skull, beak and teeth. “We know very little, practically nothing” about the species, he said Hannah HendricksMarine Technical Adviser to Department of Defence.
“If the cetacean is confirmed to be the elusive spade-toothed whale, it is First copy found in a condition allow Scientists divide itThis will help them trace the relationship of the whale to some of the other species that have been discovered, Know what you are eating And maybe get clues about where they live,” the consultant said.
According to Hendricks, only There are six other whales Shovel teeth and those found intact on the beaches of New Zealand’s North Island were buried before DNA testing verified their identity. Frustrated Any possibility Read them.
Meanwhile, the beached whale quickly A Cold storage And researchers will work with local Maori iwi (tribes) to plan how it will be studied, the conservation agency said. The indigenous people of New Zealand consider whales Tanga -A sacred treasure Cultural significance.
In April, Pacific indigenous leaders signed a treaty recognizing whales as ‘legal persons’, although such a declaration It is not reflected in laws of participating countries.
According to Hendricks, these creatures dive for food and can appear so rarely that it is impossible to pinpoint their location beyond the South Pacific Ocean, where few species are found. Sea trenches Further deep of the world.
“Researching marine mammals is very difficult if you don’t see them in the ocean. “It’s like looking for a needle in a haystack.”
Kirsten YoungA University of Exeter professor who has studied fin whales said in an email that identifying these ‘incredibly mysterious’ mammals has “taken years and enormous effort by researchers and local people”.
The First bones A spade-toothed whale was discovered 1872 In Pit Island, New Zealand. In the decade 1950 Another was found on a sea island 1986 were discovered bones From one third of Robinson Crusoe Island in Chile.
In 2002DNA sequencing showed that Three Samples belong Same species And it’s different from other beaked whales, but researchers can’t confirm If the race is extinct.
In 2010, two full-beaked whales, both found dead, washed up on a New Zealand beach. Although they were initially confused with one of New Zealand’s 13 most common species of beaked whale, tissue samples taken before they were buried later revealed they were an enigmatic species.
New Zealand is a hot spot Whale fibersthan 5,000 cases It has been recorded since 1840, according to the Department of Conservation.
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