Mystery as HUNDREDS of endangered whales strand themselves on a remote Australian beach for a SECOND day – and eerie timing of the tragedy is shocking
- Hundreds of whales have reportedly washed ashore on Tasmania’s west coast
- The whales were discovered near Macquarie Harbour, which is south of Strahan
- It comes just two days after 14 sperm whales became stranded on King Island
Hundreds of whales have become stranded after washing ashore on Tasmania’s west coast – two years after Australia’s biggest ever stranding in the same spot.
The mass stranding on Wednesday occurred near Macquarie Harbour, south of Strahan, officials with the state’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment confirmed.
It comes just two days after 14 sperm whales died after they became stranded on King Island, off Tasmania’s north-west coast, in a marine mystery that’s baffled experts.
Hundreds of whales are reportedly stranded at Macquarie Harbour (pictured) near Strahan on Tasmania’s west coast
The mass stranding comes two days after 14 sperm whales washed ashore on King Island (picture courtesy of NRE Tas)
The whale carcasses were found at a local fishing area off the island’s west coast on Monday (picture courtesy of NRE Tas)
Those whales, which were all young males, were discovered on Monday afternoon at a local fishing spot.
Wildlife biologists and a vet are still investigating how the pod became stranded – with theories ranging from warmer temperatures to seismic activity in the area.
Today’s stranding comes two years after Australia’s largest mass whale stranding, which also occurred near Macquarie Harbour in Tasmania.
More than 470 pilot whales were stranded off the coast as rescuers at the time battled to save the remaining few that were still alive.
Out of the 470 that washed ashore, at least 380 whales died.
The search effort was initially launched after 270 whales were spotted struggling in shallow water.
Rescuers were hampered by the extremely cold temperatures and rain.
Wildlife scientist Vanessa Pirotta said what caused the whales to head towards the shore remained ‘a complete mystery’ but a navigation error was a possibility
The whales were young males, according to Tasmania’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment
The Department of Natural Resources and Environment said it was not unusual to see sperm whales in the King Island area where the first stranding occurred this week.
‘It is not unusual for sperm whales to be sighted in Tasmania and the area the whales have stranded is within the normal range and habitat for sperm whales,’ a spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia.
‘While further inquiries are yet to be carried out, it is possible the whales were part of the same bachelor pod – a group of younger male sperm whales associating together after leaving the maternal group.’
Parks and Wildlife Service staff are monitoring the scene.
Swimmers and surfers have also been warned to avoid the west coast of King Island as the whale carcasses could attract sharks.
MCP wildlife biologists and a vet are at King Island investigating the stranding
The department said it was not unusual to see sperm whales off the coast of King Island
The series of strandings comes exactly two years after the largest whale stranding in Australia’s history which also occurred near Macquarie Harbour
More than 470 pilot whales became stranded off the coast of Tasmania. At least 380 died
Teams of rescuers tried to save the remaining few whales that were still alive
Beached whales most often die of dehydration.
The animals have a very thick layer of blubber that keeps them warm in deep-sea temperatures, but causes them to rapidly overheat near the surface.
A stranded whale may also be crushed to death by their own weight, without water acting as a support, or else if they are stranded in deep water they may drown if their blowholes are covered.
Mass whale strandings occur relatively often in Tasmania.
