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A record 380 whales dead after becoming stranded on Australia’s shores

The pilot whales have become stranded on Tasmania's west coast. Photo:Reuters

 

A record 380 whales dead after becoming stranded on Australia’s shores

 

By Patryk Krych | The World Daily | SEPTEMBER 23rd 2020

 

Officials have confirmed the deaths of over 380 long-finned pilot whales on the shores of the Australian state of Tasmania, in what’s being suspected to be Australia's largest stranding on record, as well as an immeasurable tragedy.

270 whales were counted on Monday, until rescuers spotted another 200 South of the Tasmanian beach, eventually bringing the death toll up. The total number of beached whales is thought to be around 480.

50 of the stranded whales were successfully rescued by authorities on Wednesday, in an area called Fraser Flats, after a long and difficult struggle in the shores’ freezing waters and dimming lights. This has been the single largest beaching incident the all of Australia’s recorded history. 380 of the whales were confirmed dead after a two-day fight to get them back out into the waters.

“As time goes on, they do become fatigued and their chance of survival reduces,” said a Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service Manager and incident controller, Nic Deka. “We do expect to rescue more but increasingly our focus is what do with the carcasses.”

30 living whales are still stranded, and the rescuers who worked on freeing the other 50 were already struggling after working all night under the gruelling conditions, near the fairly isolated town of Strahan.

Deka added that more beached whales were seen about 10km (6 miles) South of the ones that’d already been stranded in Fraser Flats, numbering around 200. They were thought to have appeared at around the same time as the first batch, though had gone on undetected. Crews are to be dispatched by boat, in order to judge whether or not anything can be done for them. “From the air, they didn't look to be in a condition that would warrant rescue,” Deka said. “Most of them appeared to be dead.”

The rescue of whales largely depends on the amount of manpower at hand, the number of volunteers and rescuers available. When whales are beached in far more isolated positions, it becomes increasingly difficult to help rescue them all. Deka added that the focus is shifting to the removal of the carcasses from the beaches, a plan that is still seeing some work.

Deka spoke with The Guardian Australia, and stated that the best method of getting rid of the carcasses was still being put to consideration. He stated that on option was to bury them in landfills, and another was to try and tow them back into the oceans. “We do know we can’t leave them in the harbour because they will present a range of issues,” Deka said. “We are committed to retrieving and disposing.”

The reason behind the mass stranding of the whales is unclear thus far. The species is known for its tendency to get stranded very often, but such a record-breaking quantity is remarkably rare and concerning. The previous record for largest amount of stranded whales was set in 1996, also in Australia, when 320 beached whales were recorded.

Dr Kris Carlyon, a marine conservation program wildlife biologist, said that “There’s nothing to indicate that this [stranding] is human caused. This is a natural event and we know strandings have occurred before and we know that from the fossil record. As far as being able to prevent this occurring, there’s little we can do.”

80% of the whale stranding incidents in Australia occur on the shores of Tasmania, according to experts, pointing to Macquarie Heads as a particularly common place for them to end up beached.

The successfully rescued whales were tagged before being sent off, needing to be guided back into open waters in order to make sure that they don’t try and return. Pilot whales, like many other species of whale, are known to travel in family groups called pods, and will often go back for one-another if any are left behind.

Two of those that’d been rescued had already returned to the stranding sites, according to Deka, “but the majority of the whales [we saved] are still out in deep water and are still swimming. We have been more successful than not.”

 

By Patryk Krych | © The World Daily 2020