Dolphin-whale hybrid spotted near Hawaii

Scientists welcome sighting of rare creature - but don’t call it a ‘wholphin’

wholphin.jpg
The so-called wholphin, seen in the foreground, swimming with a melon-headed whale which researchers believe could be its mother
(Image credit: Cascadia Research Collective)

Marine biologists have welcomed a confirmed sighting of an ultra-rare dolphin-whale hybrid in the wild.

A report published last week by ocean research organisation Cascadia Research Collective concluded that a mammal spotted off the coast of Kauai, Hawaii, in August last year is indeed the product of mating between a dolphin and a whale.

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