Pod of 157 False Killer Whales Stranded on a Tasmania Beach Could Not Be Rescued, Wildlife Officials Say
In the area’s largest stranding event for the species since the 1970s, experts decided euthanasia was the most humane course of action
/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/accounts/headshot/Sara_-_Headshot_thumbnail.png)
Australian wildlife authorities are euthanizing dozens of false killer whales that became stranded on a beach in Tasmania. They’re the remaining survivors of a pod of more than 150 individuals that had washed ashore on Tuesday.
Once a stranding happens, the marine mammals don’t have much time left. After hours without water, they become disoriented and distressed. A team of veterinarians and wildlife experts concluded that euthanizing the pod would be the most humane option for the survivors after attempts at refloating the whales proved unsuccessful due to rough conditions in the ocean.
“The animals just can’t get past the break to get out. They just keep turning around and coming back towards the beach,” Shelley Graham, from Tasmania’s Parks and Wildlife Service, tells BBC News’ Tiffanie Turnbull.
“It’s a difficult situation, but when we know it’s the best outcome for the animal for animal welfare reasons, then we’ll certainly do that job and do it as quickly and humanely as we possibly can,” Kris Carlyon, the deputy incident controller with the department, says to Donna Lu at the Guardian.
Twenty-seven whales from the total 157 were euthanized on the morning of February 19, reports Bec Pridham of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). “On site this morning, there still remains 38 animals alive, which means the natural process ran its course last night, and we lost 25 additional animals overnight,” Brendon Clark, who works with Tasmania’s Parks and Wildlife Service, tells the publication. The euthanasia process was expected to continue into Thursday.
/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer_public/a8/2c/a82cfa81-0378-4cfa-b579-6f7eaf21d124/gettyimages-2199963318.jpg)
False killer whales are large dolphins, weighing between 1,100 pounds and 3.3 tons. The last time so many false killer whales washed ashore in Tasmania was more than 50 years ago, when more than 160 became stranded on a northern beach in 1974, per CNN’s Hira Humayun and Hilary Whiteman.
Authorities are now deciding how to dispose of the enormous carcasses. “Putting machinery on site and burying them on the beach is an option that’s been considered, but given the sensitivity of the area and the natural and cultural heritage, that is something that would be very closely examined before we would choose to do that,” Clark explains to the ABC. The other option is to let the bodies naturally decompose.
Officials are now asking the public to avoid the area where the stranding occurred. “All whales are protected species, even once deceased, and it is an offense to interfere with a carcass,” the Tasmanian environment department says in a statement.
Experts aren’t sure why the whales became stranded, but mass stranding aren’t uncommon in this area of Tasmania. Beaching events can happen because of illness, loud noises, severe weather, navigational errors or animals fleeing predators. Likely, they’re caused by many factors at once. Biologists also think social bonds between the mammals could play a role—groups may follow a disoriented or sick member of the pod into dangerous conditions.
“There are many natural causes such as lead animals getting sick, lost or disoriented, as well as other factors such as weather and magnetic anomalies,” explains Angus Henderson, a marine ecologist at the University of Tasmania, to CNN. “This is the third mass stranding in five years on the west coast of Tasmania, but whether this is a pattern with a discernible cause is yet to be determined.”
In 2022, a group of roughly 200 pilot whales died after becoming stranded on a beach in western Tasmania, though people successfully got about 30 others back into the ocean. During another mass stranding event last year, rescuers were able to save 130 beached pilot whales in Western Australia.
For the most recent case, “the team on the ground will [be] conducting post-mortem investigations and sampling of deceased animals in an attempt to determine a reason behind the stranding,” adds Clark to the ABC.
