Yahoo News 18 Mar 09;
HONG KONG (AFP) – A humpback whale has been spotted in Hong Kong waters, a government spokesman said Wednesday, in the first reported sighting of the giant mammal off the southern Chinese city.
The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department said it received a report on Monday that a 10 metre (33 feet) whale was seen swimming in the East Lamma Channel, a busy sea channel to the west of Hong Kong Island.
"It is the first time we have seen a humpback whale in Hong Kong waters," the spokeswoman told AFP.
The department has been monitoring the condition of the whale, along with the Marine Police and experts from Ocean Park, a city themepark and conservation centre.
"From our observations so far, its health condition is normal and it is active," she said.
The spokeswoman said it was unlikely the whale would stay long in waters near the city because of the busy sea traffic that flows to and from the major port.
Humpbacks are found in oceans and seas around the world, but especially in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.
Humpback whale spotted in Hong Kong waters
Reuters 18 Mar 09;
HONG KONG (Reuters) - A large humpback whale has been spotted swimming close to Hong Kong's famous harbor in what's believed to be the first sighting of the species in the territory's waters.
Local television footage showed the whale surfacing in Hong Kong's East Lamma Channel leading into the city's Victoria Harbour, exhaling through its blowhole and raising its tail fin.
Hong Kong authorities say it's the first time a humpback whale has been spotted in Hong Kong waters.
"From observations it's healthy and we'll continue to monitor it," Jolly Choi, a spokeswoman for the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, said on Wednesday.
The whale, estimated to be 10 meters (33 feet) long, has already drawn a number of whale-watching boat trips since it was first spotted on Monday.
Some experts have warned the bustling harbor's heavy maritime traffic could pose a risk to the seemingly lost mammal.
"I'm quite optimistic that it can swim back out to the open seas," said Samuel Hung, the director of the Hong Kong Cetacean Research Project.
(Reporting by James Pomfret; Editing by Paul Tait)
