Islamabad, June 18, 2025: A massive blue whale upto 35 feet long was found dead in the Arabian Sea on Monday, near Gwater Bay, a remote coastal area between Pakistan and Iran.
The discovery was made by a local fisherman, Ahmad Baloch, who found the floating body near the shoreline close to Kuntani, Balochistan. The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Pakistan confirmed the incident and shared initial observations regarding the mammal’s death.
Muhammad Moazzam Khan, WWF-Pakistan’s technical adviser on marine affairs, stated that the whale likely perished several days earlier in open waters between the two countries and was eventually carried towards Gwater Bay by strong tides and rough waves.
While the exact reason for the whale’s death remains uncertain, Khan pointed out that it might have been caught in fishing nets, particularly gillnets, which are widely used in the region’s coastal and offshore waters.
READ MORE: Whales Changed from Pakicetus, an Ancient Pakistani Mammal
Blue whales, are the largest creatures known to have existed on Earth and are classified as endangered. In Pakistan’s territorial waters, three types of baleen whales have been reported: the blue whale, the Bryde’s whale, and the Arabian humpback whale.
Khan mentioned that based on the relatively smaller size of this particular specimen, it may have been a pygmy blue whale, one of two subspecies found in the northern Indian Ocean region.
READ MORE: WWF Pakistan Opposes Transfer of Snow Leopards to Russia
Emphasizing the importance of conservation of endangered species, he called for stronger measures to protect marine mammals. While provincial laws in Sindh and Balochistan offer some protection, Khan stressed the urgency of introducing federal laws to safeguard whales and dolphins across Pakistan’s exclusive economic zone.
The last recorded sighting of a blue whale in Pakistan occurred near Gadani on April 8, 2024.
