The sperm whale was first discovered two weeks ago on Thursday afternoon (Nov. 19th) in Mobile Bay, Alabama. A very rare sight as typically only an average of two sperm whales strand in the entire Gulf of Mexico every year.
Marine biologists of the Dauphin Island Sea Lab immediately started monitoring the animal from a vessel. Meanwhile, the public was urged to stay at a distance as to not stress the whale out even more.
Unfortunately, the prognosis was poor. The sperm whale had stranded an estimated 60 to 100 miles away from its usual deep-sea habitat. And while it was able to relocate itself in the water throughout the week, it ended up restranding multiple times.
By Wednesday this week, the decision was made to euthanize the whale. After facing great concern from the public, the Dauphin Sea Lab and NOAA published an elaborate explanation depicting why euthanization was the only way to go:
It was highly unlikely for an animal in such poor condition to survive in the first place.
The animal was very far from its natural habitat which means it must have already struggled heavily with orientation issues.
The fact that the animal restranded several times during the week further underlines its poor condition
Trying to push or pull the animal back to sea would have cause further injuries. A whale that size could not be successfully relocated in the country so far.
It is not possible to get a towing device of appropriate size to the location.
There are no facilities that would be able to rehabilitate an animal of that size.
They further stress their point by explaining that “Euthanasia is by no means an easy option. It is physically and emotionally demanding. For biologists who spend their lives studying and working toward the conservation of these majestic animals, there are no easy options when a marine mammal strands. In all cases, we try to do what is right for the animal with the consideration of the safety of our team.”
The euthanized animal was later transported to private grounds for the necropsy. Though it revealed that the stranded animal was a 33.5 feet long young male, a cause of stranding could not be determined yet. Samples were taken to detect any infections, analyze histology and toxic components.
For further information and updates, see the Dauphin Island Sea Lab’s website.
The Dauphin Island Sea Lab team monitored the poor condition of the stranded sperm whale
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