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The first sighting of Longman's beaked whale, Indopacetus pacificus in the southern Bay of Bengal

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 July 2009

V.V. Afsal*
Affiliation:
Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi, Kerala, India – 682018
P.P. Manojkumar
Affiliation:
Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi, Kerala, India – 682018
K.S.S.M. Yousuf
Affiliation:
Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi, Kerala, India – 682018
B. Anoop
Affiliation:
Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi, Kerala, India – 682018
E. Vivekanandan
Affiliation:
Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi, Kerala, India – 682018
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: V.V. Afsal, Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi, Kerala, India – 682018 email: vafsal@gmail.com
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Abstract

Information on at-sea sightings of beaked wholes are rare from the Indian and Sri-Lankan waters because of the relative rarity of vessels working in deep oceans where these species are encountered. A recent survey onboard FORV ‘Sagar Sampada’ brought out the first confirmed sighting of live animals of Longman's beaked whole. Indopacetus pacificus from the southern Bay of Bengal. The details of the sighting, illustrated with photographs are presented in this note.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2009

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References

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