Rare footage captures six Bryde's whales feeding together off Guangxi coast

Rare footage has captured six Bryde's whales feeding together off Weizhou Island in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, as the animals return to nearshore waters.

A research team from the Fourth Institute of Oceanography of the Ministry of Natural Resources filmed the footage during a scientific survey near Weizhou Island. Over two days, the team recorded 16 individual Bryde's whales on camera, including a mother whale and her calf feeding side by side.

According to the research team, Bryde's whales begin returning to the Beibu Gulf in the South China Sea every September. At first, they tend to gather around offshore oil platforms, but recently they have moved into waters much closer to Weizhou Island. The team's latest whale sighting was less than three kilometers from shore.

In October this year, China established its first critical habitat for Bryde's whales near Weizhou Island, filling a gap in habitat protection for large cetaceans in China's coastal waters and paving the way for the whales' return.

Rare footage captures six Bryde's whales feeding together off Guangxi coast

Trade between the nine mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) and Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) countries hit a record 5.58 trillion yuan (around 837 billion U.S. dollars) during the first three quarters of 2026, representing a year-on-year increase of 26.7 percent, according to the latest customs data.

High-end manufactured goods, including machinery, electronic goods and integrated circuits, along with green products, were the main drivers of this growth.

The nine major cities in the GBA are Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, and Zhaoqing in Guangdong Province. Together with the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, these cities form one of China's most dynamic economic hubs.

Trade between Greater Bay Area cities and APEC countries hits record high