Current:Home > StocksLast of nearly 100 pilot whales stranded on Australia beach are euthanized after getting rescued – then re-stranded -FutureFinance
Last of nearly 100 pilot whales stranded on Australia beach are euthanized after getting rescued – then re-stranded
View
Date:2025-04-12 10:10:51
Nearly 100 pilot whales became stranded on a beach in Western Australia on Tuesday. Two days and a near-successful rescue attempt later, they are all dead.
The long-finned pilot whale pod became stranded on Cheynes Beach earlier this week after they were seen huddling together in a tight group just about 328 feet offshore. Soon after, they had washed ashore for unknown reasons.
Officials at the Parks and Wildlife Service of Western Australia and hundreds of volunteers went to the beach to try to save the animals – one of the largest dolphin species – but by Wednesday morning, more than half of the roughly 96 whales had died. On Thursday, officials worked to save the 45 pilot whales that remained.
At first, they seemed to be successful, with volunteers working "tirelessly" to keep the whales submerged as they worked to move them to deeper waters. But within 45 minutes of the attempt to move them deeper, the whales had become "re-stranded further along the beach," the Parks and Wildlife Service said. That's when officials said they had to make a "difficult decision for all involved."
"Within an hour of beaching, veterinarians had assessed the whales and confirmed they were displaying signs of rapid deterioration," the government service said, adding that two of the whales had already died of natural causes. "Our incident management team then determined the most appropriate and humane course of action was to euthanise the 43 remaining whales to avoid prolonging their suffering."
Mike Conway says he spent more than 9 hours in the water at Cheynes Beach during the "heartbreaking" ordeal.
"Supporting a 1+ tonne beautiful creature for so long really creates a bond and there were so many emotions we went through, as I'm sure, every volley involved bonded with a mammal (if not the entire pod)," he wrote on Facebook. "Every now and then our whale would take off only to find and nuzzle another whale so we can only assume they were checking in on each other."
Once it was time to lead them to deeper water, Conway said the team "gave our whales one final rub, wished them luck and pushed them in the direction of the open ocean."
"We remained in the water, slapping the surface, gently turning a snubby nose around here and there as they turned back the wrong way," he wrote. "...We remained hopeful, but it became evident pretty quickly they were intent on heading back to the shallows. Unfortunately, sometimes nature has other plans, but it's also a testament to these whales extremely close family bonds ."
Incident controller Peter Hartley said in a video statement it "wasn't the outcome we were hoping for."
"But the one thing I did observe yesterday was the very best of humanity and the best that humanity can offer," he said on Thursday, noting that 350 people were on site to try to help the animals.
For Conway, the incident has left him "utterly shattered" and "cold to the bone."
"We will never forget this," he wrote, "and at least we can say we tried our best."
- In:
- Oceans
- Australia
- Whales
Li Cohen is a social media producer and trending content writer for CBS News.
veryGood! (8374)
Related
- Trump invites nearly all federal workers to quit now, get paid through September
- Sen. Bob Menendez says gold bars and cash at his residence were illegally found and seized
- Columbia students at pro-Palestine protest allegedly attacked with 'skunk' chemical
- Ron DeSantis announced his campaign's end with a Winston Churchill quote — but Churchill never said it
- The Grammy nominee you need to hear: Esperanza Spalding
- UK gives Northern Ireland a new deadline to revive its collapsed government as cost of living soars
- Valerie Bertinelli let go from Food Network's 'Kids Baking Championship' after 12 seasons
- Dueling political factions demonstrate in Venezuela’s capital as presidential election race heats up
- Elon Musk's skyrocketing net worth: He's the first person with over $400 billion
- Filipino fisherman to Chinese coast guard in disputed shoal: `This is not your territory. Go away.’
Ranking
- Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people
- Joel Embiid, Karl-Anthony Towns set franchise records, make NBA history with 60-plus points
- Man ordered to stand trial in slaying of Detroit synagogue leader
- What's causing measles outbreaks? Experts point to vaccination decline, waning herd immunity
- US appeals court rejects Nasdaq’s diversity rules for company boards
- How do I ask an employer to pay for relocation costs? Ask HR
- Ohio State athletics department generated revenue of almost $280 million in 2023 fiscal year
- Los Angeles Times to lay off one-fourth of newsroom staff starting this week, union head says
Recommendation
Military service academies see drop in reported sexual assaults after alarming surge
U.S. identifies Navy SEALs lost during maritime raid on ship with Iranian weapons
New York man convicted of murdering woman who wound up in his backcountry driveway after wrong turn
Victor Wembanyama shows glimpses of Spurs' future at halfway point of rookie season
The FBI should have done more to collect intelligence before the Capitol riot, watchdog finds
Lily Gladstone, first Native American actress nominee, travels to Osage country to honor Oscar nod
Judge says Canada’s use of Emergencies Act to quell truckers’ protests over COVID was unreasonable
Youth rehab worker charged with child abuse after chokehold made boy bite tongue in half