Top NZ scientist dismayed at allegations of Japanese whaling in new Antarctic reserve.

Whale stranding at Baylys Beach near Dargaville.

Wellington's first Matariki fireworks hinge on whether the whale stays in the area.

Activists are calling on Japan to "put down the harpoons".

Passengers on board Auckland Whale & Dolphin Safari were in for a rare natural show on Tuesday when they discovered a whale carcass complete with feeding sharks floating north-east of Waiheke Island. / Footage supplied by AWADS.

A pair of some of the rarest whales delight tourists in an epic encounter.

Army personnel dig a trench to the sea in a bid to help rescue a stricken Orca on a Marlborough beach. Twitter / @NZarmy

An orca whale is stranded at Marfells Beach in Marlborough

Researchers from Cornell University and Oregan State University fear that seismic airguns in oil and gas drilling areas are negatively impacting whales, with repetitive sounds travelling thousands of kilometres and repeating for months on end. / Audio from Cornell University.

Barry Head was still grinning hours after helping rescue a stranded pygmy sperm whale.

Survival rates fall from 70 per cent in the 1990s to 45 per cent now.

Golden Bay whales may have headed back to sea.

DoC staff were tonight monitoring a pod of about 200 pilot whales milling around in the sea off Golden Bay.

Volunteers are using two boats to guide the 17 pilot whales that were stranded at Golden Bay this morning to the rest of the their pod and try to coax them out to deeper waters.

People are being warned to stay off a beach where the carcasses of hundreds of whales are at risk of exploding.

Did recent seismic surveys in the area cause whales to beach themselves at Farewell Spit?

New Zealand 'disappointed' at Japan's latest whaling foray into the Southern Ocean.

Conservation group Sea Shepherd have photographed a Japanese whaling ship with a dead whale in protected waters.

Photographer's drone video captures local kayaker Tim Stewart swimming with orca off Army Bay

Stunned fishermen spotted a gigantic alien-like ball floating off the coast of Western Australia before it was devoured by hungry sharks.

Japan has advised the International Whaling Commission it will resume whaling in the Southern Ocean but has reduced its intended take.

The New Zealand Government has hit out at Japan's decision to resume Southern Ocean whaling - a move which defies the International Whaling Commission.

A minke whale that beached itself on an Auckland beach yesterday does not appear to have re-stranded today.

A video posted by explore.org, a multimedia wing of the philanthropic Annenberg Foundation dedicated to documenting wildlife, shows belugas approaching a boat while a cellist on board plays The Beatles. The scene was captured by explore.org's Beluga Boat Cam, a project that broadcasts beluga sightings underwater and on deck. Source: explore.org /Facebook

A whale has been basking close to shore at Auckland's waterfront.

Baby orca J50 leaps out of the waters of Haro Strait between islands in British Columbia and America's Washington state, seemingly with a large stretch of water to itself.

This year’s Cook Strait Whale Survey counted 137 humpback whales, its highest tally in its 12 years and an encouraging indication their numbers are increasing in New Zealand. The annual four-week Department of Conservation survey, which ended on July 11, also broke its record for the highest number of humpbacks seen in a day with 27 spotted on Sunday June 21.

Hundreds of scientists have rallied against a new Japanese proposal to kill whales in the name of research — a plan one New Zealand marine biologist calls whaling in disguise.