14 young sperm whales are found dead, beached on an Australian island
One of 14 dead sperm whales washed up on a beach Tuesday on King Island in northern Tasmania, Australia.
CANBERRA, Australia – Australian wildlife authorities are investigating the deaths of 14 young sperm whales that were found stranded on an island off the southeast coast, officials said Tuesday.
The whales were found Monday afternoon on King Island in Bass Strait between Melbourne and Tasmania’s northern coast, the Tasmanian Department of Natural Resources and Environment said in a statement.
A team from the government’s marine conservation program went to the island Tuesday and is conducting a necropsy on the whales to try to determine the cause of their death.
Photos distributed by the department show the whales lying on their sides in shallow water along the island’s rocky shore.
Authorities are planning to conduct an aerial survey to determine if there are any other whales in the area.
The department said it was not unusual to see sperm whales in Tasmania and that the area where they were found on the beach was within their normal range and habitat.
“While further investigation is pending, it is possible that these whales are part of the same single pod – a group of young male sperm whales banding together after leaving their mother’s pod,” the Department of the Environment said.
Meanwhile, surfers and swimmers are being warned to avoid the immediate area in case the whale carcasses attract sharks to nearby waters.
About 470 long-finned pilot whales were found stranded on a sandbar off Tasmania’s west coast two years ago in the largest mass stranding on record in Australia.
After a week of efforts, 111 of the whales were rescued, but the rest died.
14 young sperm whales are found dead, beached on an Australian island最先出现在PurpleBlue。
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