40-foot endangered sperm whale washed ashore in Oregon

A 40-foot sperm whale was found dead along the Oregon coast Saturday after its body washed ashore on a stretch of beach in Fort Stephens State Park, officials said.

The whale was found near the wreck of Peter Iredale Park’s flagship and belongs to an endangered species of marine mammal, Seaside Aquarium said in a statement. facebook Posted on Sunday. The aquarium also shared a short video on its social media page of a beached sperm whale after it was discovered.

According to the aquarium, several “large cuts” were found on the whale’s body, which are partially visible in the video and may have been the result of a collision with the ship.

“[H]However, it is not clear if this attack occurred before or after the death,” the aquarium said in a Facebook post.

Officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration could conduct an autopsy as early as Monday afternoon, Michael Milstein, a spokesman for the agency, told CBS News via email. Milstein said the survey could reveal more details about the whale’s death and its causes.

The aquarium’s report noted that Fort Stephens State Park staff had removed the sperm whale’s lower jaw “to keep the teeth intact for scientific purposes,” adding that the whale “is considered a young male.” Milstein told CBS News on Monday that the 40-foot sperm whale is “about the typical size” for an adult male.

Sperm whales are largest toothed whales on Earth, according to NOAA, males sometimes reach almost 60 feet in length and weigh more than 40 tons. They usually feed on deep water marine species such as squid, sharks and other fish and can live up to 60 years. According to Milstein, the population of sperm whales found off the US West Coast is estimated at about 2,000 individuals, but “they are less common in the north in winter.”

“Therefore, the presence of sperm whales at this time of year is somewhat unusual, but we have had cases of sperm whales stranding in the winter before,” Milstein explained, adding: “Sperm whales are the third most common species of whale stranded in Oregon, after gray whales and humpback whales.”

Although the exact size of the current global population of sperm whales is unknown, it is estimated that there may be between 200,000 and 1 1/2 million of them inhabiting the oceans around the world. reported. Whales are listed as depleted under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 and endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, after nearly two centuries of commercial whaling, according to NOAA Fisheries, “sperm whale populations have been significantly reduced throughout the world.”

The government agency notes that the sperm whale population is “likely increasing” since a moratorium on commercial fishing was introduced in 1986, but is also “still recovering” as a species whose survival remains threatened for a number of reasons. According to NOAA Fisheries, which is leading conservation efforts for sperm whales, the species is vulnerable to ship collisions, entanglement in fishing gear, underwater noise pollution that can interfere with their ability to communicate, marine debris, spills of oil and other pollutants, and various consequences. climate change.

According to NOAA, several incidents have been reported in which an offshore vessel has fatally shot down a sperm whale. However, from 2010 to 2014, the agency reported that 37 whales were injured in ship strikes along the Atlantic coast of North America and in the Gulf of Mexico, with similar estimates along the Pacific coast. NOAA called these reports “minimum estimates” that are “probably underestimated because the number of unreported deaths and serious injuries is unknown.” Additional research has shown that seagoing vessels pose a serious threat to whales and other marine life. 2017 assuming that about 80 blue whales, fin whales and humpback whales attack the US west coast each year.

Several whales, including endangered species, have recently been killed or injured in US waters. Earlier this month, a 4-year-old North Atlantic right whale – one of the world’s rarest, with only a few hundred left – was initially sighted on Jan. 8 by an aerial photography team from the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Florida, heavily entangled. in fishing gear. The whale was seen again about 20 miles east of Rodanthe, NC with “a few coils of line around the mouth and tail” and more line trailing behind it. NOAA said. The agency said the animal was “likely to die” after tangled lines left her with “numerous wounds on her body and whale lice on her head.”

Around the same time, a 21-foot killer whale was found stranded and later died after being washed ashore near Daytona Beach in Florida, and another 32-foot whale washed ashore in Brigantine, New Jersey. after officials said she was most likely hit and killed. on a seagoing vessel, according to CBS Philadelphia. Earlier, in mid-December, a humpback whale named Moon, widely known and loved by the researchers who studied it, was left with a broken spine and was unable to use its tail after colliding with a ship while sailing from Canada to Hawaii. Experts said they believe this trip will be Moon’s “last trip” before her death.

Content Source

News Press Ohio – Latest News:
Columbus Local News || Cleveland Local News || Ohio State News || National News || Money and Economy News || Entertainment News || Tech News || Environment News

Related Articles

Back to top button