When a couple spotted a flailing marine mammal on the shore of Oyster Bay, South Africa, they immediately called the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) before rushing for help themselves. The stranded animal was a 1.8 m juvenile dwarf sperm whale that was unable to get back into the open after having beached in very shallow water.
Even though the couple succeeded in getting the animal back into deeper water repeatedly, it kept washing back to the shore and “nothing seemed to work”. The NSRI proceeded to place the animal on a blackboard and transported it to deeper waters of the bay where it “appeared to swim away once it was released”.
Hours later, however, the whale was reported stranded again. Since it was evident that the animal was suffering and would not be able to survive, the NSRI decided to euthanize the juvenile as “it was the only humane option left”.
The dwarf sperm whale was taken to Bayworld to undergo autopsy and ascertain the reason for the animal’s stranding. As the event of one animal stranding seems to correlate with increased likelihood of further strandings, the area will be monitored more closely and people are asked to alert the NSRI right away in such an event.
The article can be found here: https://www.heraldlive.co.za/news/2020-01-28-watch-pe-couples-efforts-to-save-stranded-whale-end-in-heartache/
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