SYDNEY: Dozens of false killer whales stranded on a remote beach within the Australian state of Tasmania will likely be euthanised after dangerous climate and the remoted location hampered efforts to push them again into the waters, Australian authorities mentioned on Thursday (Feb 20).
Greater than 150 endangered dolphins, recognized generally as false killer whales as a result of their resemblance to killer whales, had been discovered stranded this week on the island state’s northwest coast close to Arthur River, about 400km from Tasmania’s state capital, Hobart.
“The circumstances that the staff confronted yesterday in makes an attempt to refloat the whales proved very difficult and in reality, harmful to our workers,” Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service Brendon Clark mentioned in a media briefing.
A complete of 27 animals had been euthanised on Thursday morning whereas 38 had been nonetheless alive, Clark mentioned.
The euthanasia course of is predicted to complete in a while Thursday.
Officers have mentioned the stranding response can be complicated as a result of inaccessibility of the positioning, ocean circumstances and the challenges of getting specialist tools to the distant space.
The animals can develop as much as 6.1m lengthy and weigh as much as 1,361kg. They’re present in all tropical and subtropical oceans, usually in deep offshore waters, in keeping with the US Nationwide Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
