A maritime patrol has filmed fin whales powering through Mediterranean waters off the coast of southern France – showing how wild animals are roaming more freely while people isolate indoors because of coronavirus. The graceful pair appeared off the Calanques National Park, a protected reserve next to the usually bustling but now locked-down Mediterranean port city of Marseille. Fin whales are among the largest whales, weighing as much as 70 tonnes and growing 20 metres (65 feet) in length. Didier Reault, who heads the park’s board, says it is very rare for them to be spotted and filmed at such close quarters in the reserve’s waters. ‘The absence of human activity means the whales are far more serene, calm and confident about rediscovering their playground that they abandon when there is maritime traffic,’ Reault said
In This Story: France
France is a republic and the largest Western European nation. Through expansion and colonisation in the 17th and 18th centuries France became a great power and still retains territories around the world. It has a seat on the UN security council and is the world’s fourth most wealthy country with a high standard of living and strong cultural identity.
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In This Story: Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant.
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