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YEREVAN, OCTOBER 23, ARMENPRESS. So little is known about Omura's whales that scientists are unsure how many exist or how rare the species is. To date, the team catalogued approximately 25 individuals through photographic identifications. An international team of biologists made the first-ever field observations of one of the least known species of whales in the world—Omura's whales—off the coast of Madagascar. “Armenpress” reports about this, citing phys.org.
For many years, these marine mammals were misidentified as Bryde's whales due to their similar appearance—both are small tropical baleen whales with comparable dorsal fins, though Omura's are slightly smaller in size and have unique markings with a lower jaw that is white on the right side and dark on the left.
When Cerchio and his colleagues, who have been conducting field research on marine mammals off the northwest coast of Madagascar since 2007, first spotted an Omura's whale in the area in 2011, they too believed it was a Bryde's whale.
After moving study areas in 2013, the sightings became more frequent and the team noticed the distinct markings— unique asymmetrical pigmentation on the head— that led them to believe the whales might be Omura's whales.