RARE WHALE FOUND.
DISCOVERY AT WAVERLEY. SOUTHERN BEAKED VARIETY. A southern beaked whale has been washed up on the beach near the mouth of the Wairoa Stream at Waverley. The discovery was made last Thursday by Sir. R. J. Johnston, of Waverley, who communicated with Mr. G. Shepherd, of the Wanganui Museum. Mr. Johnston informed Mr. Shepherd that the whale was most peculiar and possessed a beak -"like a duck." Mr. Shepherd identified the whale as a southern beaked whale (Mesoplodon grayi). Mr. Shepherd said that the specimen was most rare. It was an extremelv good one and when found had been dead for but a few hours. It was a peculiar thing to look at, continued Mr. Shepherd, for it was some 17ft. long with a girth of Bft. Bin. The body was black, but it had a white beak some 18in. in length, giving it an unusual appearance. The skeleton is to be placed in the Wanganui Museum.
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New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20989, 28 September 1931, Page 8
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160RARE WHALE FOUND. New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20989, 28 September 1931, Page 8
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