MYSTERY surrounds the death of 14 sperm whales that became stranded on a beach on King Island off Australia’s state of Tasmania.
Tasmania officials confirmed the young whales were already dead when they washed ashore and were discovered on Monday.
A total of 14 sperm whales have been found dead on a rocky beach
Scientists are baffled by the reasons the whales may have travelled to the shore
“It is possible the whales were part of the same bachelor pod – a group of younger male sperm whales associating together after leaving the maternal group,” a spokesman for Tasmania’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment, said in a statement.
Because of the nature of the environment in which the whales have washed up, the bodies will be left to decompose as it would prove difficult to remove them.
“Members of the public are reminded it is an offence to interfere with protected wildlife, including being in possession of parts of a dead whale, and are asked to keep their distance.”
Photos distributed by the department showed the marine mammals lying on their sides in shallow water on the island’s rugged shore.
A local resident said she went down to the beach with her family and saw the stranded whales.
“They lay there for quite a long time as they already had a specific smell and blood around,” she told ABC.
The Department said the whales had been found at a fishing spot.
Wildlife scientist Vanessa Pirotta, meanwhile, said the reasons why whales would travel towards the shore still remain a “complete mystery”.
A plane will be dispatched to check for any other strandings in the area.
Authorities have carried out necropsies to try and understand how the animals ended up dead on the shore.
Officials conducted necropsies of the whales to try to determine their cause of death.
The whales were all lying on their sides in shallow water
