A mass stranding of long-finned pilot whales in southwestern Australia led to the deaths of 29 of the stranded creatures on Thursday, according to authorities. saying. Another 100 whales were rescued and redirected out to sea from Toby’s Inlet, which is located at the bottom of Western Australia, about 150 miles from Perth, the state capital.
Footage released Thursday by the Western Australian Parks and Wildlife Service showed a large pod of pilot whales huddled together at the edge of the Toby’s Inlet coast, where the ocean meets the land. Although many were still submerged in very shallow water, several of the whales were completely stranded.
Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions via AP
Wildlife agents, marine scientists and veterinarians attended the scene. Just before noon, the Parks and Wildlife Service reported that four pods of up to 160 pilot whales were stranded in the water and spread over an area of approximately 1,600 feet, with 26 whales stranded on the beach itself.
“Our team is doing everything possible to respond safely and keep volunteers and staff safe, while also acting in the best interests of the whales,” the wildlife service said as they worked to manage the situation. “Our team is assessing the conditions of the whales that have been stranded on the beach. Our teams in the water are trying to keep the animals together and away from the beach.”
Officials originally said the stranded whales would likely need to be euthanized, based on previous similar incidents. Last July, dozens of whales belonging to the same species He died on a different beach. in Western Australia after becoming stranded. In the end, the wildlife service said 51 whales of the 96 that were stranded had died.
Ian Wiese, a whale researcher, was one of hundreds of volunteers who helped wildlife officials carry out their rescue operation, the Associated Press reported.
“When I first got there, there were, I think, 160 in the water, almost out of the water, and there were a couple hundred people who were with the whales, trying to comfort them and make sure their heads were out of the water so they could breathe. And then after about an hour, suddenly the ones that were in the water that were still alive left and went out to sea,” Weise told the AP.
“They might decide to come back to shore at some other nearby beach or something – that happens a lot, but we’re hopeful they won’t,” he said.
In Thursday’s latest update from the wildlife service, Pia Courtis, regional wildlife officer, confirmed that the largest group of rescued whales had been sent to sea. An “observation plane” surveyed the area but did not see those capsules during the flight, which Courtis suggested could be a promising sign.
“There have been no further sightings of the capsule this afternoon, which is good news,” Courtis said. “The observation plane will continue to monitor the area during daylight hours, but we are hopeful that the capsule will not return to shallower waters.”
The dead pilot whales were being removed from the beach when Courtis gave the latest update. The wildlife officer said they would take measurements and some samples to biopsy the animals before moving them to a landfill. Courtis said the hope is that the information gleaned from the carcasses will help scientists better understand this species, and the herd specifically, to hopefully understand why they became stranded.
Long-finned pilot whales are a large species of dolphin, with individuals typically measuring between 19 and 25 feet long and weighing between 2,900 and 5,000 pounds. according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The typical lifespan of a pilot whale is 35 to 60 years, although their survival is threatened by several factors, including chemical pollutants, disease, entanglement in fishing gear, and ocean noise. They often travel in dense herds, and much of what is known about the species and its behavior comes from other mass strandings.
The reasons why whales and dolphins become stranded or run aground are not always clear. Depending on the scenario, scientists and experts have postulated in the past that injury or illness of one or more animals in a given capsule could contribute to the phenomenon, as well as unusual weather and attempts to escape underwater dangers such as entanglements.