Skip to main content

Blue whale found dead in Balochistan’s Gwater Bay

• WWF-P adviser suggests the marine mammal may have died after becoming entangled in gillnets
• The most recent sighting of the world’s largest mammal was off the coast of Gadani in April last year

KARACHI: A 35-foot-long blue whale was found dead in the Arabian sea, in a remote area called Gwater Bay, between Pakistan and Iran, on Monday.

According to officials representing the World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF-Pakistan), local fisherman Ahmad Baloch spotted the dead whale floating near Kuntani, Balochistan.

“It is likely that the whale may have died a few days back in the open sea between Pakistan and Iran and drifted towards the Gwater Bay by rough sea and strong currents,” said Muhammad Moazzam Khan, technical adviser at the WWF-Pakistan.

He added that while the exact cause of the death could not be ascertained, the marine mammal might have gotten entangled in gillnets, commonly used in the coastal and offshore waters in the area for fishing.

Classified as an endangered species, blue whales, scientifically called Balaenoptera musculus, are described as the largest animals ever known to have existed.

It’s one of three baleen whales reported from Pakistan’s waters. The other two whales are the Bryde’s whale and the Arabian humpback whale.

There are four subspecies of blue whales, of which two include the pygmy blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda) and the Indian Ocean blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus indica) found in the Northern Indian Ocean.

“Considering its small size, this dead blue whale sighted at Kuntani might be a pygmy blue whale,” Mr Khan shared, while expressing concern over the endangered species’ mortality.

He emphasised the need for urgent steps for its conservation. “Now all cetaceans, including whales and dolphins, are protected under the wildlife and fisheries legislations of Sindh and Balochistan. We also need to enact the federal legislation for the protection of cetaceans, including whales, in the Exclusive Economic Zone of Pakistan.”

According to the organisation, blue whale is known to be distributed in tropical and subtropical waters of the Indian Ocean. There are many records of the occurrence of blue whales in Pakistan; the last blue whale was spotted off Gadani, Balochistan, on April 8, 2024.

Blue whales can reach a maximum length of about 100 feet and weigh up to 200 tonnes.

Published in Dawn, June 17th, 2025



from The Dawn News - Home https://ift.tt/bJopc1S
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani skipping home run derby

Baseball’s biggest star is skipping the home run derby. Shohei Ohtani confirmed after Tuesday’s win over the Diamondbacks that he will not be participating as he continues to rehab an elbow injury that has prevented him from pitching this season. “There’s been some conversations going on,” Ohtani said, according to Juan Toribio of MLB.com . “I’m in the middle of my rehab progression, so it’s not going to look like I’ll be participating.” Manager Dave Roberts said Ohtani and the club reached the decision together. Ohtani signed a historic 10-year, $700-million contract with the Dodgers after winning his second AL MVP award last season with the Angels. Despite his elbow injury, he has served as the Dodgers’ primary DH this season and been one of the most productive hitters in baseball. Ohtani entered Tuesday hitting .316/.399/.635 with a 1.034 OPS. He hit his NL-leading 27th home run in the win. Ohtani had previously participated in the Derby in 2021. Last season’s champion, Vlad...
Post a Comment
Read more

Pakistan flag installed at UNSC as country becomes non-permanent member for 8th time

The Pakistani national flag was installed in front of the United Nations Security Council chamber, as the country began its eighth term as a non-permanent member (2025-26) of the 15-member body, according to a press release issued by the Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the United Nations on Thursday. Pakistan on Wednesday began a two-year term as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). Elected in June to replace Japan, Pakistan now occupies one of the two Asia-Pacific seats on the UNSC. It will preside over the council in July, a key opportunity to set the agenda and foster dialogue. View this post on Instagram This marks Pakistan’s eighth term on the council, providing an opportunity to shape discussions on pivotal international issues, but also posing significant challenges. “As part of the joining ceremony, flags of the five new incoming non-permanent members — Pakistan, Denmark, Greece, Panam...
Post a Comment
Read more

Heathrow resumes operations as global airlines scramble after shutdown

London’s Heathrow Airport resumed full operations on Saturday, a day after a fire knocked out its power supply and shut Europe’s busiest airport, causing global travel chaos. The travel industry was scrambling to reroute passengers and fix battered airline schedules after the huge fire at an electrical substation serving the airport. Some flights had resumed on Friday evening, but the shuttering of the world’s fifth-busiest airport for most of the day left tens of thousands searching for scarce hotel rooms and replacement seats while airlines tried to return jets and crew to bases. Teams were working across the airport to support passengers affected by the outage, a Heathrow spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “We have hundreds of additional colleagues on hand in our terminals and we have added flights to today’s schedule to facilitate an extra 10,000 passengers travelling through the airport,” the spokesperson said. The travel industry, facing the prospect of a financial ...
Post a Comment
Read more