A nearly 3.5-meter-long whale was spotted on the shores of Amami-Oshima island in southwest Japan and died on Saturday despite efforts to save it by residents.
A total of 10 people, including members of the local association for whales and dolphins and a fire department, tried to rescue the whale that was beached in Tatsugo close to the northern end of the island. However, rough seas stopped their efforts, and the whale perished just a few hours after.
According to the group, the whale was the short-finned whale pilot whale found in the open oceans off the island of Kagoshima Prefecture. This is the second incident involving the species since the year 2018.
During the rescue operation it gave birth to a baby that was about 1.5 meters but was dead by the time it was found.
This is the third time that there has been a beaching of an animal, either a dolphin or whale, in the area this year. The group will dissect it to determine why it’s dead and plan to keep the animal as a skeleton.
A crowd of 50 was watching the rescuers as they worked to help the whale. Kengo Arata, who is 42, was a resident, said that the whale was “in such a weak condition that it was unable to swim by itself.”
Source: Kyodo
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