Department of Conservation staff Cheryl Pullar (left) and
Jim Fyfe begin an autopsy in Dunedin on Wednesday on the
Gray's beaked whale that washed up near Kaka Point earlier
this week. Massey University marine mammal pathologist
Stuart Hunter looks at the injured beak (rear,
crouching).Photo by Stephen Jaquiery.
The Gray's beaked whale that washed up on a Kaka Point
beach earlier this week was a lactating mother, and its calf is
unlikely to survive without it.
Preliminary results from a necropsy (animal autopsy)
undertaken by Department of Conservation staff and Massey
University marine mammal pathologist Stuart Hunter on
Wednesday showed the healthy whale had died as a result of
boat strike.
Doc marine ranger Jim Fyfe said they found both jaws of the
whale were broken and it had a severe gash on its head.
"The injuries did occur while it was still alive and were
substantial enough to cause its death."
Examination of its reproductive system indicated its calf
might only be a month or two old and, at that age, would
probably not survive by itself, he said.
"We may see the calf [on a beach] in due course, so if anyone
does observe anything washed up they need to report it in."
The calf would be about 2.4m to 3m long.
Doc contracted Massey to do necropsies in cases of suspicious
deaths of marine mammals to confirm cause of death.
The necropsy also gave University of Otago zoology students
and academics a chance to learn from the whale's death, he
said.
After consultation with runanga, the whale was buried in a
grave site along Otago's coast.
- rebecca.fox@odt.co.nz
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