200 Whales Are Dead In Australia After A Mass Beaching On The Anniversary Of Another Beaching
More than 200 whales have died in Tasmania, Australia, after an estimated 230 whales became stranded on the beach on Wednesday Sep. 21.
More than 200 whales have died in Tasmania, Australia, after an estimated 230 whales became stranded on the beach on Wednesday Sep. 21.
The occurrence comes on the second anniversary of Australia’s worst whale stranding, when 470 whales were beached at the same location and only 111 survived, according to the Guardian.
Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service had launched a rescue operation for the stranded pilot whales at Ocean Beach and Macquarie Harbour, with 35 whales remaining alive as of Thursday Sep. 22, according to CNN.
Experts had believed swells may push the whales deeper inland, complicating the rescue process even further.
It is uncertain why whales became stranded in the same place twice, but scientists speculate rising temperatures have pushed pilot whales’ food further inland.
“In pilot whales, they are highly social and cohesive and if one is debilitated or comes too close to shore, hundreds can follow,” Professor Karen Stockin from Massey University in New Zealand told the Guardian.
Tasmania has seen several cases of whale stranding throughout the years. Earlier in the week, 14 sperm whales were also stranded on Tasmanian soil.
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