About 240 whales died when they washed ashore in the Chatham Islands, 840 kilometers off New Zealand’s South Island. About half a thousand animals died in the second cetacean within a week. Official sources confirmed this Tuesday. (10.11.2022).
The New Zealand Ministry of Defense said in a statement that its teams had reported earlier in the day at Waihere Bay, located on Pit Island and known as Ranguriea (by its Maori name).
The remaining whales, whose number is unknown, were euthanized to save them from “further suffering” as their internal regulations prohibit refloating them due to the risk of shark attacks to staff and injured mammals from the remote Chatham Islands.
“This decision is never taken lightly, but it is the best option in cases like this,” Dave Lundquist, the ministry’s technical advisor for marine affairs, was quoted as saying in the memo. He further explained that Pitt is “New Zealand’s most remote uninhabited island” so “communications are limited and logistics are challenging.”
Many marine mammals, including whales and dolphins, frequently strand on the beaches of South Australia and New Zealand, with experts unable to elucidate the reasons. These incidents are believed to be caused by disease, navigational errors, sudden changes in tides, stalking by predators or extreme weather.
HEIs (EFE, AFP)
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