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A whale stranded on Kaitorete Spit, along the coast of Canterbury, has been euthanised.
Department of Conservation mahaanui operations manager Andy Thompson said: “Sadly the stranded juvenile pilot whale at Kaitorete has been euthanised for the wellbeing of the animal.”
“This difficult decision was made after refloating was not possible due to the very challenging conditions, including a steep beach and large waves.”
A whale stranded on Kaitorete Spit, along the coast of Canterbury, has been euthanised. Photo / George Heard
“The whale had been out of the water for a number of hours and was beginning to suffer so the decision was made based on the animal’s welfare,” Thompson said.
DoC staff confirmed there were no other pilot whales in the area.
It’s still unknown why the whale stranded.
“While we do not regularly see pilot whales stranding on Kaitorete, the Banks Peninsula area is a hotspot for a wide range of marine life including whales. It is not unusual for pilot whales to be in this area,” Thompson said.
According to the DoC website, pilot whales are one of the largest members of the dolphin family.
“If you have sighted one in New Zealand’s waters, it is almost certainly a long-finned pilot whale. They roam throughout the cold temperate waters of the Southern Ocean,” the website says.
DoC says pilot whales are prolific stranders, and this behaviour is not well understood. Photo / George Heard
DoC says pilot whales are prolific stranders, and this behaviour is not well understood.
“There are recordings of individual strandings all over NZ, and there are a few mass stranding ‘hotspots’ at Golden Bay, Stewart Island, and the Chatham Islands.”
The pilot whale was beached at Kaitorete Spit near Birdlings Flat on Banks Peninsula. Photo / George Heard
The biggest recorded pilot whale stranding was an estimated 1000 whales at the Chatham Islands in 1918.
The stranding was near Christchurch. Photo / George Heard
