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September 19, 2008
Blue whales spotted off the Kerry coast-Ireland
Blue whales, the planet’s largest living animals, have been spotted off the west coast of Ireland in what experts say is the first validated sighting on record.
The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) confirmed today that one of its members had photographed the whales off the Kerry coast while on board a fishing vessel on Monday.
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sightings of the creature are extremely rare as their numbers remain low as a result of decades of over-exploitation by commercial whale fisheries.
“So hopefully this sighting will herald the beginning of a new era, in which blue whales will continue to recover and begin to visit our inshore waters, in the same way as their smaller cousins, the fin and humpback whales,” the IWDG said.
Posted by sue at September 19, 2008 10:51 AM