On Thursday, the New England Aquarium declared that its Omura whale research off the coast of Madagascar was highly successful. The study on the rare tropical whale was led by Dr. Salvatore Cerchio. Last fall, Cerchio’s team claimed 80 sightings whereas before their expedition, just 44 sightings as a whole had been made since the discovery of the whale.

In 2003, the Omura’s whale was recognized just as a unique species. Since long, the tropical Omura’s whale has been mistakenly taken to be pygmy Bryde’s whales. The rare tropical whale study by Dr. Salvatore Cerchio and his fellow researchers was a first on the elusive species.

In an interview with Fox News, Dr. Cerchio said, “Once we realized they were Omura’s whales, it was mind boggling because first of all, no one had studied these animals. No one had seen them or documented them in wild and they weren’t supposed to be in Madagascar. The work extended their range significantly”.

Whales are quite lovely creatures and they deserve protection. He was amazed to realize how in this day and age a whale species with lineage going back to over 10 million years can become the focus of a study for first time ever.

The whales actually looked like Bryde’s whales but they possessed a different head ridge and also strange pigmentation on their noggins.

Omuras have a soft corner for the tropics. The Omuras’ existence in the tropics doesn’t make much sense. The tropics don’t have a lot to offer in the way of sustenance enough for whale. They are strange because they don’t mind it and don’t venture beyond the tropics.