More than 40 pilot whales from the dolphin family, often called "black dolphins", have died after a mass stranding on New Zealand’s remote eastern coast, despite rescue efforts by volunteers and conservation workers. Conservation officials said this on Friday, November 6, UNN reports, citing The Guardian.
Details
The Department of Conservation (DOC) said that 43 animals died during a mass stranding along the coast of Ngawi, at the southeastern tip of the North Island.
The Department of Conservation was notified about the pilot whales shortly after 8 a.m. on Thursday, after which conservation staff, the Māori iwi, and volunteers attempted to save them. However, "it is believed that none of these pilot whales survived," said Arianna Hawira, acting operations manager for DOC Wairarapa.
After the pilot whales were first spotted trapped among the rocks, rescuers tried to return some of the surviving animals to the water, but were mostly unsuccessful.
Efforts to rescue the pilot whales were hampered by the remote location, powerful surf, and sharp rocks in the intertidal zone, said Project Jonah, which took part in the rescue operations.
"When the pilot whales were discovered, approximately 40–50 pilot whales had stranded along several kilometres of coastline," Project Jonah said in a Facebook post on Friday. "Many had already died before they were found, and sadly, the pilot whales that were found alive died over the course of the day."
The Department of Conservation is working with the Māori iwi to arrange the burial of the animals, Hawira said. Māori consider them taonga—a sacred treasure.
Animal strandings are fairly common in New Zealand, and according to the DOC, more than 5,000 whale and dolphin strandings have been recorded since 1840.
Pilot whales are members of the dolphin family and can grow up to seven metres long and weigh up to three tonnes. The species frequently strands, although its behaviour is not yet fully understood, Hawira said.
"Although strandings in this part of the coast are rare, there is no indication that strandings are becoming more frequent or more severe," she said.
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