A rare North Pacific right whale has been spotted off the coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia`s Far East for the first time, a local environmental official has said.
"The mammal, accompanied by humpback whales, was observed near the Kozlov cape," the spokesman said.
The North Pacific right whale is now extremely rare due to 19th and 20th century whaling. According to the Center for Biological Diversity, the North Pacific right whale is the most endangered whale on Earth, with the current population accounting for only 2,000 individuals, if compared with 50,000 before the beginning of whaling.
The spokesman said officials at a local nature reserve took samples of whale`s skin using a crossbow in order to carry out genetic testing.
"The examination that has been carried out... proves that it was a Pacific right whale," he said.
He added that a dead North Pacific right whale was once found near the Lopatka cape off the Kamchatka coast.
sections: Nature & Health |