Australian scientists say they are developing a non-invasive way of
determining the age of a whale by looking at its dandruff. The researchers say the need for a new testing method is urgent, since Japan plans to increase its annual catch of whales for scientific research, including, for the first time, humpback and fin whales.

Currently, baleen whales such as humpbacks which lack the teeth often used to determine the age other whale species are aged by dissecting them and counting the layers that form in their ear wax. But that procedure can only be conducted on dead whales. The age of a whale is important in assessing, among other things, how well populations are recovering after being devastated by commercial whaling during the past century.

The research will be carried out by the Southern Cross University's Whale Research Centre in Lismore, Australia.

So no need to kill whales anymore ... unless you like eating whale meat.