A mysterious dead whale that recently washed up on a New Zealand beach may belong to the world's rarest cetacean species, spade-toothed whales, which are so elusive they have never been seen alive. If this is the case, the newfound specimen will give scientists a rare chance to study the creatures we know next to nothing about.
Beachgoers discovered the 16.5-foot-long (5 meters) carcass July 4 on the shore near Taieri Mouth — a village in the Otago region of New Zealand's South Island. Wildlife experts from the country's Department of Conservation (DOC), recovered the remains and took DNA samples, which have been sent to the University of Auckland for analysis, according to a DOC statement.
