145 White Whales Die in New Zealand
November 26
Up to 145 pilot whales that were stranded on a remote beach on the southern tip of New Zealand have died, the country's Department of Conservation (DOC) said on Monday.
A hiker found the two pods late on Saturday on Stewart Island. Half of the whales were already dead by the time he arrived.
The DOC decided to euthanize the remaining whales, DOC manager Ren Leppens said. The remote location and lack of nearby personnel meant successfully refloating the whales was highly unlikely.
Mass strandings of pilot whales are rare in New Zealand
The DOC did not say what had caused the stranding, but added that sickness, predators or extreme weather could have been factors.
In a separate case, 10 pygmy killer whales stranded themselves on a beach in the north of the count...