THE Shenzhen Museum will bring back one of the three finless porpoises that were recently found dead in the sea near Shenzhen and Huizhou to use as a specimen. It will be the first cetacean species specimen collected by the museum, the Shenzhen Economic Daily reported.

    Three finless porpoise bodies were found between Thursday and Saturday with two of them being found in Dapeng New Area. Both bodies were found to be male finless porpoise cubs. The porpoises were so young that they did not even have primary teeth, according to researchers with Shenzhen Institute of Guangdong Ocean University.

    One of the bodies was 79 centimeters long and the other was 1 meter in length. A taxidermist from Shenzhen Museum, Zheng Yongfeng, said that the smaller finless porpoise would immediately be made into an immersed specimen and stored at the oceanic industry park while the larger one would be stuffed and exhibited in the museum afterwards.

    “The process of taxidermy gets harder and more complicated when the finless porpoise is so small that its bones and flesh are hard to separate since the bones have not yet been calcified,” said Zheng.

    The taxidermist estimated that it would take at least six months to finish the taxidermy because marine mammals have thick fat, which requires a series of complex steps to remove.

    Researchers said that the sea off Shenzhen frequently sees finless porpoises settling, but because of their timid nature, porpoises are not easily found by people. Residents who have spotted finless porpoises or their bodies should notify the local authorities immediately, which will be of great value for researchers who are studying the species.

    A person in charge of Shenzhen Museum said that the dead sperm whale found in Shenzhen last week will be stuffed and exhibited in Huizhou and the incident has aroused awareness about marine animals and the protection of ocean environment among Shenzhen residents.

    He added that to have the stuffed finless porpoise exhibited at the museum would have significant meaning for Shenzhen Museum. The sample will be showcased at the museum’s nature exhibition hall, which is located in Longhuan District along with an array of other samples. (Zhang Qian)