Newest cetacean

The newest, most recently recognised species of cetacean is the Australian snubfin dolphin (Orcaella heinsohni), formally reclassified as a separate species in its own right in 2005. This shy, tricoloured dolphin with a very rounded bulbous brow and a very small stubby dorsal fin has been sighted regularly in the shallow waters off the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, for many years, but until DNA and other studies confirmed its distinct status it had always been classified as belonging to the same species as the Irrawaddy dolphin.

[Ref: Cetacean Society International Whales Alive! – Vol. XIV No. 4 – October 2005]