A humpback whale washed ashore
(Mirror Daily, United States) Rescue teams are always there to help animals in need. Unfortunately, this was not the case of a humpback whale, which was found on the beach of Sea Isle City, in New Jersey. Specialists found the humpback whale washed ashore on Friday, and according to them, it must have died at sea.
People at the Marine Mammal Strand Center were in charge with the humpback whale washed ashore in Sea Isle City. Experts determined that the large marine animal must have died four or five days before being dragged to the shore by the restless waves. Veterinarians who examined it observed that it showed signs of exhaustion.
The autopsy was completed the following day, and it revealed further details on the status of the humpback whale. The procedure took specialists no less than eight hours. All signs seem to indicate that the animal met humans at sea. Researchers believe that getting entangled in fishing gear was the first problem of the animal. After struggling with it, the whale got problems which prevent it from feeding and eating properly.
Moreover, another important factor which must have contributed to the animal’s death is that it collided with a ship. Being hit by a large vessel must have been the final cause which led to the humpback whale’s death, and, eventually, its body ended up on the coasts of New Jersey.
The Marine Mammal Strand Center was also in charge of removing the body of the humpback whale and cleaning the beach. Workers used special, heavy equipment to perform the task.
The humpback whale washed ashore on Friday afternoon was a young male. According to specialists who did the measurement, it weighed twenty tons, and it was approximately thirty-three feet long. Humpback whale adults can grow more than this, reaching more than forty feet long, and weighing over thirty tons.
Humpback whales are kind marine mammals, one of the largest that roam the seas and oceans of the world. They use echolocation to communicate and navigate, and males are famous for being able to produce long songs, which last for ten or even twenty minutes. They migrate, and in summer they feed in cold waters at the poles. They spend their breeding season in warm waters, in tropical regions.
Humpback whales used to be hunted, but now they face other human threats which endanger the population. Entanglement in fishing gear is just one of them, and it happened to with the humpback whale washed ashore in Sea Isle City.
Image courtesy of: Wikipedia