Tourists photograph Omurawal, the world's rarest whale, in Thailand

Little is known about this animal. Films have only been recorded once so far. But now this species appears for the second time.

Tara Rezaei Farmand/T Online

Footage of the world's rarest whale was released for the second time ever earlier this year. Off the coast of Thailand, a group of tourists spotted two Omura whales in the sea next to their boat.

in the videoWhich was posted on the social media platform Tiktok, the beluga whale can be seen under the sea. According to an environmental organization Thailand This is the first Omura beluga whale ever seen.

The rarest whale in the world

The Omura whale (Balaenoptera omurai) belongs to the baleen whale group, which also includes the world's largest living animal, the blue whale. Baleen whales are particularly notable for their size, as they can grow to more than six metres. Their long, thin body is also a characteristic of this species.

Only in 2003, Omura's whale was described and officially recognized as a separate species by Japanese researchers. After that, there was silence about giants for a long time, and there was almost no progress in research.

In 2015, film and audio recordings of a live Omura's whale off the northwest coast of Madagascar were released for the first time. Since then, the animals have been spotted several times, but have yet to be photographed again.

Illustration of an Ōmura whale.Image: Imago Stock & People

The search isn't too far off yet

So far little is known about the animals. Scientists aren't sure how large the population of Omura's whales is, how they spread, or how many living animals are currently swimming in the oceans.

Their exact habitat cannot yet be narrowed down. Researchers assume that they reside mostly in the Indian Ocean and parts of the Pacific Ocean.

It is believed that a full-grown whale of this species could be between ten and 11.5 meters long and weigh up to 20 tons. New registrations Phuket In southeastern Thailand it could advance research.

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