Whales
![](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/7G58Y7tigkcbKVuwqTpTW7-320-80.jpg)
Find out everything there is to know about whales and stay updated on the latest whale news with the comprehensive articles, interactive features and whale pictures at LiveScience.com. Learn more about these fascinating creatures as scientists continue to make amazing discoveries about whales.
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Latest about Whales
![A large dolphin-like whale is carried by a digger on a beach with two people walking alongside it](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/miPMoatuxfxkt43HcDomP8-320-80.jpg)
Ultra-rare whale never seen alive washes up on on New Zealand beach — and scientists could now dissect it for the 1st time
By Harry Baker published
A beaked whale that recently washed up dead on a New Zealand beach likely belongs to the world's rarest cetacean species. If confirmed, researchers could dissect the species for the very first time.
![A fin whale gliding through the ocean. We can make out its grey back and white belly.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/pbNASduer2Mv2bTAmj9VA3-320-80.jpg)
Japan plans to commercially hunt vulnerable fin whales, enraging conservationists
By Sascha Pare published
Japan has announced plans to add fin whales — the second-largest animal on Earth — to its list of commercial whaling species, which currently includes Bryde's, sei and minke whales.
![close up on the head of a sperm whale as it's swimming in the ocean](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/FZzLUJ2GKfFgNfLMBXUa2J-320-80.jpg)
Sperm whales drop giant poop bombs to save themselves from orca attack
By Jennifer Nalewicki published
A pod of sperm whales flung their poop at unsuspecting orcas to avoid a fatal attack.
![composite image showing beluga whale with a changed head shape](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/W5LmbrPURPGdNu76Za69bA-320-80.jpg)
Beluga whales appear to change the shape of their melon heads to communicate, scientists discover
By Richard Pallardy published
Beluga whales appear to change the shape of their heads during encounters with one another in what scientists believe is a form of visual communication among this highly social species.
![Beluga whale.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yyZXSNB3ntrYAiYCUVxPkJ-320-80.jpg)
Why some whales go through menopause
By Gennaro Tomma published
Toothed whales appear to have lengthened their lifespan without lengthening their reproductive life so they can help care for their grandchildren, a new study suggests.
![A whale tail image taken just out of water.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/jkzabbu2U8SXDN8Fe5Rd63-320-80.jpg)
7,000 humpback whales died in the North Pacific over 10 years — and 'the blob' is to blame
By Elise Poore published
New research using artificial intelligence reveals that a decline in the North Pacific population of humpback whales between 2012 and 2021 coincided with the strongest marine heat wave recorded globally.
![Two male humpback whales having sex in surface waters.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/xSkbp7Z9LMjZiJzszFs9Hh-320-80.jpg)
Male humpback whale seen forcing sex on emaciated, injured male in extremely rare encounter
By Sascha Pare published
Photographs taken off Maui, Hawaii, show the first documented case of a male humpback whale sexually penetrating another male, with the latter appearing injured and covered in parasites.
![Aerial footage of whale swimming with its calf.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ADA2ytUJTnSSpwVggAea6A-320-80.jpg)
Critically endangered right whales are shrinking, with drastic consequences for their population
By Melissa Hobson published
Climate change appears to be causing North Atlantic right whales to get smaller, and it's making them have fewer babies.
![Whales bones pictured underwater at the bottom of the seafloor next to a diver against a dark background](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/i6KYtNvW9maB2cfs6izVw7-320-80.jpg)
Eerie photograph captures whales hunted off Greenland lying in their watery grave
By Hannah Osborne published
Haunting image showing two whales with their bones picked clean off the coast of Greenland has won the Underwater Photographer of the Year 2024 competition.
![A diver swims next to a blue whale](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ppnEErTaB7stpBmBRQUjYd-320-80.jpg)
Hidden DNA found in blue whales reveals they've been mating with other species — and their hybrid offspring
By Harry Baker published
Newly sequenced genomes of blue whales in the Atlantic Ocean contain "unexpectedly high" levels of fin whale DNA, hinting that the two species have been interbreeding much more than previously realized.
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