Scientists believe it's 'highly likely' they have identified a new species of orca

Type D killer whales off the coast of Chile.
(Image credit: Screenshot/YouTube/National Geographic)

For the first time ever, scientists on a research mission in the stormy waters off the coast of Cape Horn, Chile, found and studied the mysterious Type D killer whale in the wild.

Robert Pitman with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says it is "highly likely" these animals are a new species of orca. The killer whales were spotted in January in a region that has the "world's worst weather," Pitman told National Geographic. The Type D killer whales have proven elusive; experts had never seen any live and had to rely on the few amateur photos taken of the orcas and descriptions from fishermen.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.