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A 14-meter whale died after being stranded in Golden Bay yesterday.
1/2 THREAD UPDATE. The large whale that was stranded in Puponga, Golden Bay on Friday afternoon died last night just before 10pm. Locals were quick to attend the site and provide care for the whale, and DOC staff and the local iwi stayed with the whale into the evening. pic.twitter.com/rf0zxwdhZd
– Project Jonah (@ProjectJonah) December 4, 2020
The huge animal, believed to be a sei whale, was discovered by locals at Farewell Spit in the afternoon, and the general manager of the project Jonah whale saving organization said it died last night.
Daren Grover said the whale was showing signs of poor health early on and that there was likely an underlying reason for its stranding.
Grover said Department of Conservation staff and iwi will decide whether to move the whale carcass or leave it and place a rahui on the beach.
Sei whales are described by the Department of Conservation as a rare sight in New Zealand.
At 17 meters long and some 30 tons in weight, it is at the “upper end” in size for the species, which is one of the largest types of whales.
About 30 volunteers, local iwi and DOC workers kept it moist and cool last night after they found it at Farewell Spit.
He did not appear to be injured, but DOC Biodiversity Ranger Mike Ogle said he appeared to be unwell with shortness of breath and passed away around 9.25pm.
“Just as the tide was about to reach it, it managed to move and it managed to roll upright, which for a 30- or 40-ton animal was quite impressive.
“But then another 20 minutes later, he took a breath and he just didn’t take another,” he said.
1/2 This afternoon we were notified of a large whale beached in Golden Bay. DOC personnel were nearby and arrived on the scene quickly after the first report. There are concerns about the health of the whales and it is showing signs of poor condition. pic.twitter.com/RFBChGBbsW
– Project Jonah (@ProjectJonah) December 4, 2020
Ogle said the DOC and locals would attempt to refloat and tow the whale into deeper water this morning, where it could decompose and provide nutrients for local species.
“Tony Nicholls is a local with a pretty powerful 15 meter boat and he has taken out three sperm whales for us before, with that boat. So we hope we can hook him to this one and he can tow it too.
“But the high tides are going down … we have a lower one than yesterday, so that is of no benefit.
“If we can get him out of the tidal flats here, we’ll get him to the middle of the Farewell Spit and tie him to a big anchor up there, out of everyone’s way, where we have tied up big corpses before.”
Mike Ogle said that he has not seen a stranded Sei whale in 17 years working in the area and that he has only seen one at sea.
There is not much museum evidence of the species in New Zealand.
“I got a message from Rochelle Constantine at the University of Auckland, who curates the DNA tissue file from dead whales stranded on the beach. She only has four [Sei] samples in that file, and it’s a huge file, so it’s very small, “he said.
“Anton van Helden, who works for DOC on the marine team, says there is very little in the collections of the sei whale museums in New Zealand.”
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