Scientists and culture experts in New Zealand have begun the first-ever dissection of a spade-toothed whale, the world's rarest whale species.

A whale species scientists know next to nothing about will undergo the first full dissection in New Zealand after washing ashore this summer.

An extremely rare spade-toothed beaked whale is being examined by researchers in New Zealand. Only seven of its kind have ever been found and almost nothing is known about the enigmatic species.

New Zealand scientists on Monday began dissecting a whale considered the rarest in the world, a species so elusive that only seven specimens have ever been documented. "This one is the rarest of the rare -- only the seventh specimen known from anywhere in the world,

A spade-toothed whale that washed up in New Zealand in July 2024 is about to be studied, and scientists hope to learn more about how they can help it survive.

I can’t tell you how extraordinary it is,” said a joyful Anton van Helden, senior marine science adviser for New Zealand’s conservation agency, who gave the spade-toothed whale its name to distinguish it from other beaked species.

New Zealand scientists have begun dissecting a spade-toothed whale, considered the rarest whale in the world, marking the first time researchers have been able to study a complete specimen. On Monday,

It is the world’s rarest whale, with only seven of its kind ever spotted. Almost nothing is known about the species. But on Monday a group of scientists and experts in New Zealand clustered around a near-perfectly preserved spade-toothed whale hoping to decode decades of mystery.