In general, “it is kind of unusual to have killer whale strandings”, Mandy Keogh, the Regional Marine Mammal Stranding Coordinator for NOAA Fisheries in Alaska, explains. Finding two killer whale carcasses within a short time from each other on the shores of Sitka, Alaska, is therefore especially strange.
The first one was found in late June. Since the carcass was already heavily decomposed, only the teeth were forwarded to NOAA for further investigation on age and ecotype. Later in August, a young male washed up on Pain Island. Again, a full necropsy could not be performed but as much information as possible was gathered to get an understanding of the circumstances.
A better opportunity might be found in a sick sea lion that has been frequenting Eliason Harbor. It appeared to be in bad shape, looking bloated and not using its hind legs and flippers as expected. Another dead sea lion down the coast was identified as a different individual, so people are asked to stay on the look-out for the sick animal. Keogh empathizes that “it’s so important to report strandings to the NOAA Hotline. We can track that, and look for unusual increases in a species or an area, and that might give us insight into whether something’s happening in the marine environment that might be of concern, and then we can start investigating that.”
The full report can be found here: https://www.alaskapublic.org/2020/09/03/a-pair-of-stranded-killer-whales-and-a-sick-sea-lion-has-biologists-looking-for-answers/
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