Whales are affected by the same environmental hazards as humans are. It is difficult to collect data from living whales due to their size, apprehension around humans, and location any given season. To collect DNA used to involve hitting the whale with a sharp probe that cut away a piece of flesh.  

Enter the Snot Bot. A drone with cameras, recording devices, and a collection box for mucas, dna, exhaled gas, etc.  Hovering over a whale when it spouts allows the drone to collect samples without stressing the animal.