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Common dolphin

WDC takes ‘A Walk in the Park…with Animal Friends’

Longstanding WDC partner Animal Friends returns with season two of their podcast 'A Walk in...
Japanese whaling ship

Infamous whale slaughter ship docks for the final time

The whaling ship, Nisshin Maru has returned to the port of Shimonoseki for the final...
Sperm whale

Dominica announces new protections for sperm whales

Dominica has placed almost 800 square kilometers of sea off the west coast of the...
Porpoise dies after becoming entangled in fishing net

UK government rejects chance to protect whales and dolphins

The government has formally rejected almost all of the crucial recommendations made in a House...

Omura's whale discovered in Sri Lanka

A species of whale that was only identified for the first time in 2003, has now been discovered living in the waters around Sri Lanka.

Omura’s whale was originally found in Japan, but sightings have since been recorded across the northeastern and south Atlantic, western Pacific and Indian Ocean. They are sometimes confused with Bryde’s whale but are smaller and like fin whales, have assymetrical markings on the jaw – white on the right-hand side, darker on the left.

Sri Lankan scientist, Dr. Asha de Vos, has published a paper on her discovery of a group of whales off the southern part of the country. It is of particular interest because while there have been previous sightings in the western and eastern parts of the Indian Ocean, this is the first time they have been seen in the central part, suggesting they may be some connection between the different populations.

One of whales had an entanglement scar on its jaw, highlighting a potential threat to this little-known whale about which we still have much to learn.

About George Berry

George is a member of WDC's Communications team and website coordinator.