Young Whale Dies After Beaching In Long Beach Island

HOLGATE, NJ — A young humpback whale suffering from apparent propellor strike damage beached itself on a sandbar on Long Beach Island and died, the Marine Mammal Stranding Center (MMSC) said.

The whale was first spotted by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection's aerial survey team at about 3 p.m. on Oct. 17, MMSC officials said. The stranding center called U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City to help locate the whale and get additional images. A routine Coast Guard helicopter was able to divert its flight path and located the whale shortly before sunset.

The whale appeared to be beached on a sandbar only accessible by boat, according to the MMSC. Due to the lack of daylight, operations were suspended until morning.

On Saturday morning, a Coast Guard helicopter relocated the whale as a New Jersey State Police Marine Unit took MMSC staff to the scene.

The young humpback whale, about 29 feet long, was lethargic and very thin, MMSC officials said. Wounds consistent with a previous propellor strike were seen on its left and right dorsal side.

After the medical assessment, it was determined that the whale's prognosis was "extremely poor" and was unlikely to survive, officials said.

"The impact of stranding on cetaceans (dolphins and whales) is traumatic as their body weight and organs are normally supported by the water around them," MMSC staff said. "When a cetacean is stranded for any length of time, their own body weight causes crushing damage to their internal organs, which lessens their chances of survival."

Officials did not know how long the whale had been stranded before it was reported.

The decision was made to humanely euthanize the whale. However, the body must be removed from the site if traditional euthanasia methods are used as the tissues become highly toxic to the environment and other animals who may feed on the carcass, officials said. Local landing sites were unable to be used due to the recent nor'easter causing heavy erosion in the area.

A different euthanasia method would have to be used, but incoming tide and approaching darkness meant it was unable to be used Saturday evening, officials said. The whale was given sedatives to keep it comfortable until the following daytime low tide, and it was monitored until well after dark, officials said.

The next morning, Sea Tow Atlantic City went to check on the whale shortly after high tide and found that it had died in the night.

The whale had first been spotted in the New York Bight on Oct. 2, officials said. At that time "it was evident" that it had experienced significant trauma from propellor strikes still in the process of healing. Based on the whale's very thin body condition, those wounds were impacting its ability to feed, officials said.

"Our entire team is deeply saddened by every deceased animal that we investigate, but the ones that hit the hardest are animals like this young whale who never got the chance to contribute to their species," MMSC staff said.