It blew these Wales-watchers minds.
Sightseers were flabbergasted after spotting a particularly rare “lost” whale while exploring the Welsh coastline, as detailed in a Facebook post making waves online.
The party had reportedly been on a SeaMor Dolphin Watching trip off Recent Quay, Ceredigion, when, abruptly, they spotted a creature much rarer than a dolphin, the BBC reported.
Accompanying photos, shot from the boat and via drone, show the mystery critter, which has a smooth, rounded back and a big schnoz like an oversized bottle-nose dolphin.
The creature was actually a Sowerby’s beaked whale, a brilliant rare species that generally resides within the North Atlantic Ocean at depths of over 3,280 feet, per the Sea Watch Foundation, a charity that works to conserve marine life.
Up to now, there have been only “13 confirmed sightings of Sowerby’s whales within the UK since 2007,” said Claudia Afeltra, a marine biologist affiliated with the organization.
Unnecessary to say, the dolphin oglers were awestruck by the find.
“HOLD THE FRONT PAGE!!!!” wrote SeaMor Dolphin Watching charters on their Facebook page. “NOT JUST A WHALE.. A SOWERBY’S BEAKED WHALE IN NEW QUAY.”
They surmised that the whale, which might reach between 14 and 21 feet in length, had ventured into shallow water after getting lost.
Thankfully, the majestic sea beast “turned and headed back to the deeps by itself accord,” per the post.
“While the sighting has not raised immediate concerns for the whale’s well-being, because it appeared healthy and naturally retreated to deeper waters, we’ll closely monitor its movements,” added Sea Watch.
The charity believes the sighting is “significant” as it could possibly help make clear the behavior and distribution of the elusive cetacean.
They’ve since implored the general public to report any future Sowerby’s beaked whale sightings to them in the longer term.
The Sowerby’s is a relative of the Cuvier’s Beaked whale, the world’s deepest diving animal, which is able to venturing 6,561 feet below the surface.
In 2020, one among these living submersibles set a latest world record after diving for 3 hours and 42 minutes without coming up for air.