The carcass of a 32-foot fin whale has been found wedged on the bow of a Japanese tanker as it pulled into harbour.
The huge creature sprawled over the vessel in the port of Mizushima in Kurashiki city on Tuesday.
The coast guard was called out to the harbour after locals caught sight of the whale.
Local news site Yomiuri reported that the tanker had sailed through the Pacific Ocean on its way to Mizushima port and the crew claimed they had no idea that they had hit a whale.
'I've been fishing here for decades, but it's the first time I've seen a whale,' a fisherman who witnessed the tanker pulling into the harbour told local media.
'I've lived for more than eighty years, but it's my first time [seeing a whale],' another witness said.
The whale's species is yet to be confirmed but the Institute of Cetacean Research told Yomiuri that it appeared to be a fin whale.
The fin whale, otherwise known as the finback whale, is ranked as a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
It is the second-longest species of cetacea on Earth after the blue whale, reaching lengths of 27.3 metres (89.6 feet) and a weight of 74 tonnes.
It is found in all the world's major oceans and in waters ranging from the polar to the tropical.
The huge creature sprawled over the vessel in the port of Mizushima in Kurashiki city on Tuesday.
The coast guard was called out to the harbour after locals caught sight of the whale.
Local news site Yomiuri reported that the tanker had sailed through the Pacific Ocean on its way to Mizushima port and the crew claimed they had no idea that they had hit a whale.
'I've been fishing here for decades, but it's the first time I've seen a whale,' a fisherman who witnessed the tanker pulling into the harbour told local media.
'I've lived for more than eighty years, but it's my first time [seeing a whale],' another witness said.
The whale's species is yet to be confirmed but the Institute of Cetacean Research told Yomiuri that it appeared to be a fin whale.
The fin whale, otherwise known as the finback whale, is ranked as a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
It is the second-longest species of cetacea on Earth after the blue whale, reaching lengths of 27.3 metres (89.6 feet) and a weight of 74 tonnes.
It is found in all the world's major oceans and in waters ranging from the polar to the tropical.
Music: Drop - Anno Domini Beats
Source: Daily Mail, Yomiuri, Wikipedia, Pexels
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