A young humpback whale that washed up near Haida Gwaii last weekend appears to have died from blunt force trauma from being hit by a boat or ship.

A human-made racket under the ocean is a growing threat to three types of whales off the East Coast, Canadian scientists say.

University of British Columbia (UBC) researchers have discovered what they are calling a "unique nerve structure" in the mouth and tongue of rorqual whales - the largest of the baleen whales.