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![This drone image taken just off the coast near Esperance in Australia shows a juvenile humpback swimming alongside a southern right whale that has potentially adopted the young calf.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GWh8jUxqFGMrSqtJ7nsfkG-320-80.jpg)
Whale sighting in Australia hints at 'extremely unusual' interspecies adoption
By Harry Baker last updated
An adult southern right whale was recently spotted swimming alongside a humpback whale calf. Experts think the larger whale may have adopted the juvenile after it lost its real mother.
![A new study suggests that blue whales may ingest up to 10 million pieces of microplastics every day at peak feeding times.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/Rnyz2zgxx8pKgQFqRmXc9L-320-80.jpg)
A blue whale's daily intake of microplastics weighs as much as a small person
By Harry Baker published
Researchers estimate that blue whales may each consume up to 10 million pieces of microplastic every day during their main feeding season as they chow down on plastic-filled prey.
![An aerial photograph of a Rice's whale in the Gulf of Mexico. The species was officially named in 2021 and is endemic to the northeast region of the gulf, making it the only whale species endemic to U.S. waters.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/eXGqn7QkuQb9T59T5UTYST-320-80.jpg)
Newfound whale species that lives exclusively in US waters may already be on the brink of extinction
By Harry Baker published
A group of more than 100 international researchers has signed an open letter to the Biden administration calling for urgent action to save Rice's whale from extinction.
![beluga whale](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/7p8Vo7eNLSSSN5b9bVLNQM-320-80.jpg)
A Parasite Spread by Cat Poop Is Infecting (and Probably Killing) Whales in Canada
By Brandon Specktor last updated
Fifteen of 34 dead beluga whales tested positive for a potentially lethal cat-poop parasite.
![a photo of Ocean Beach, Tasmania taken from the air shows hundreds of pilot whales on the shoreline](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/pYv5BLRqdg8AdE9aVGuMjN-320-80.jpg)
230 pilot whales beached in Tasmania — exactly 2 years after the area's last mass stranding
By Nicoletta Lanese published
Two mass strandings have occurred in the same region of Tasmania.
![The dead humpback whale with white skin on a beach near Mallacoota in Australia.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gubC6ri9Gay7JCwX9mweAk-320-80.jpg)
Extremely rare white humpback whale washes up dead on Australian beach
By Harry Baker published
A dead white humpback whale was recently found on a remote beach in Australia. However, experts say the animal is not an albino.
![Beluga whales say hello to a camera aboard the beluga boat Delphi.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/9uNEiVYHkmy4AvXCk6mCTY-320-80.jpg)
55,000 beluga whales are on the move, and you can watch their migration live
By Stephanie Pappas published
In celebration of Arctic Sea Ice Day (July 15), viewers can tune in to watch beluga whales frolic in Hudson Bay by the thousands.
![In this illustration, giant sharks scavenge the enormous corpse of Livyatan, an extinct, enormous sperm whale that lived around 12 million years ago.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/HJsDbAEE65gcLaZP9UJXpn-320-80.jpg)
What was megalodon's favorite snack? Sperm whale faces
By Mindy Weisberger last updated
New analysis of fossil skulls from sperm whales that lived millions of years ago shows that numerous species of ancient sharks preyed on the whales … and ate their faces.
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