fin whales

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The Whales Have Rebounded, but a New Threat Looms
The Whales Have Rebounded,
but a New Threat Looms
LONGFORM
Nov 10, 2024 9:00 AM CST

The Whales Have Rebounded, but a New Threat Looms

Hakai Magazine explains how Canada's fin whales may be decimated by shipping tankers

(Newser) - The second largest animal on earth is a bit of an enigma to scientists. Fin whales don't have ostentatious jumps or enormous sprays of water announcing their presence. Despite being up to nearly 90 feet in length (dwarfed only by the blue whale), they travel unannounced in deep waters...

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...

Blue Whales Carry Surprising Levels of Another Species' DNA

North Atlantic blue whales receiving fin whale DNA through mating with hybrid offspring

(Newser) - The blue whale population has started to recover from the devastation brought by commercial whaling in the early 20th century. But the world's largest ever animal isn't quite the same. In analyzing the genomes of Balaenoptera musculus musculus—the "most endangered" of four subspecies of blue whale,...

Destroyer Docks in San Diego With 2 Dead Whales on Hull

Australian navy says it is 'disheartened'

(Newser) - A disturbing find was made as a Royal Australian Navy destroyer docked in San Diego on Saturday: Two dead whales—one of them as long as a tractor-trailer—had been stuck to its hull, CNN reports. The endangered fin whales, one 65 feet long and the other 25 feet, became...

Malibu Tows Rotting Whale Carcass Out to Sea

Smell bothered millionaires

(Newser) - Malibu's version of a nightmare is over: A tugboat has towed the carcass of a 20-ton fin whale some 20 miles out to sea and away from the beach where it was decomposing , reports the AP . The tugboat crew was hired by a homeowners' association that took matters into...

Dead 50-Foot Whale Found in Boston Harbor

Cause of death still unknown

(Newser) - A rare and unwelcome sight in the Boston Harbor: A dead finback whale was discovered floating in the harbor yesterday, and authorities are waiting for it to wash up on shore so they can examine the body and then dispose of it. The whale, more than 50 feet long, may...

Whales Return to NYC
 Whales Return to NYC 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Feb 5, 2011 7:54 AM CST

Whales Return to NYC

'Menagerie of giants' calling New York's waters home

(Newser) - Whales have returned to the waters around the Big Apple in numbers not seen for at least a century, a comeback experts believe is the result of anti-hunting laws and cleaner waters. Dolphins and seals have also made triumphant returns, and one ferryboat captain estimates the numbers of marine mammals...

Dead Whale Found Stuck on Cruise Ship

(Newser) - Researchers want to know what killed a rare whale found lodged on the bow of an Alaskan cruise ship docked in Vancouver. It took two tug boats to remove the impaled 70-ton middle-aged fin whale from the Sapphire Princess' bow, reports the Vancouver Sun. Tourists gathered to watch the gruesome...

8 Stories