According to officials on Wednesday, marine scientists have given up on saving more than 150 fake killer whales that became stranded on a secluded beach in the Australian island state of Tasmania.
According to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, 157 whales were found on an exposed surf beach on Tuesday afternoon near the Arthur River on Tasmania’s northwest coast, and experts, including veterinarians, were on the scene.
According to incident controller Shelley Graham, the unfavorable weather and ocean conditions that hindered the whales’ rescue on Wednesday were expected to last for days.
According to department liaison officer Brendon Clark, this was Tasmania’s first fake killer whale stranding since 1974. That group of over 160 whales made landfall on a northwest coast beach close to Stanley. Pilot whales typically strand in Tasmania.
Clark refused to speculate on the possible cause of the most recent pod’s stranding. He stated dead whale carcasses would be analyzed for hints.
There were no more whales within 10 kilometers (6 miles) of the stranded pod, according to a helicopter reconnaissance conducted Tuesday afternoon, he said. By early Wednesday, some might have been stuck for up to 48 hours.
Jocelyn Flint, a resident of Arthur River, claimed that her son had found the stranded whales while shark fishing at midnight. She claimed that although she had visited the scene in the early morning and returned after sunrise, the whales were too large to be refloated.
They were flailing as the water rushed straight up. Flint stated Wednesday morning, “They’ve sunk down in the sand and are simply dying.” It’s too late, in my opinion.
“There are infants. There are many large ones up one end. “It’s sad,” she continued.
230 pilot whales became stranded at Macquarie Harbour, further south on the west coast, in 2022.
