World's rarest whale may have washed up on New Zealand beach

In this photo provided by the Department of Conservation rangers Jim Fyfe and Tūmai Cassidy walk alongside what is believed to be a rare spade-toothed whale, on July 5, 2024, after its was found washed ashore on a beach near Otago, New Zealand.

Spade-toothed whales are the world's rarest, with no live sightings ever recorded. No one knows how many there are, what they eat, or even where they live in the vast expanse of the southern Pacific Ocean. However, scientists in New Zealand may have finally caught a break.