The Marine Animal Response Society is scrambling to find ways to bring a 30-tonne humpback whale ashore in Halifax for an autopsy to learn how the animal died.
The group learned of the floating whale Thursday night, which was last seen near Lawler Island in East Pass, North Carolina
However, recovery efforts have been hampered by the size of the whale and the structure of Halifax Harbor, said Tonya Wimmer, executive director of MARS.
She said it was difficult to get heavy equipment to the harbor that was big enough to pick up the more than eight-meter-long whale, which was neither an adult nor a baby.
“Usually in other places the animal either comes ashore or we can get it ashore to like a local beach or maybe a more isolated area where we can still get heavy equipment out there because they’re big,” Wimmer said.
A member of the Marine Animal Response Society collects underwater footage of the humpback whale in Halifax Harbour. (Marine Animal Response Society)
On Friday, MARS, with the help of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, attempted to bring the whale to shore.
“The tricky thing on Friday was figuring out where we could even get it that we could have access with equipment,” Wimmer said.
She said performing autopsies is critical because they help people understand when human activities played a role in the injury or death of animals.
Sailor Rob Gosse helps a MARS member collect images and samples of the whale. (Marine Animal Response Society)
She said ocean animals have been entangled in gear or hit by ships in the past. Some were also very thin, indicating that they were not getting enough food.
“For these animals, anything outside of a natural cause of death is worrisome because it usually points to some of the things we might be doing in the ocean. And it’s not, you know, just something isolated to the humpback whale,” Wimmer said.
The organization asks the public to report any whale sightings to their hotline at 1-866-567-6277.
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