A pod of almost 100 whales that became stranded on a beach on the southwestern Australian coast were euthanized, despite the efforts of hundreds of volunteers. On Tuesday, the pod of 97 long-finned pilot whales gathered in shallow water off Cheynes Beach, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) southeast of Perth, with scores stranding themselves on the sand. By Wednesday morning, 51 of the whales had died. Hundreds of volunteers wore wetsuits to protect against the Southern Hemisphere winter cold and spent all day trying to herd the whales back into deeper water. But the whales repeatedly re-beached themselves. Ultimately, Western Australia’s Parks and Wildlife Service staff decided to euthanize the remaining 45 whales to limit their suffering. “It was a tough decision. However, the welfare of the whales had to take precedence,” the Parks and Wildlife Service said in a statement.
It is unknown what caused the whales to strand themselves, but experts speculate that the unusual behavior could indicate stress or illness within the pod. Pilot whales are highly social animals that maintain close relationships with their pods.
A drone video released by the Parks and Wildlife Service showed the whales huddled together, occasionally forming a heart shape. The strandings have made international headlines, and the public has been asked to stay away from the beach.
Officials have been overwhelmed by offers of help from the community, with more than 250 registered volunteers taking turns keeping vigil on the beach. They used slings to get the whales into deeper water, but their effort was thwarted by the whales’ repeated re-beaching themselves on the shore.
The pod was first spotted swimming off Cheynes Beach on Monday but moved closer to the shore that afternoon. By Tuesday, about half of the whales had become beached on the shore, causing alarm among wildlife officials. The Parks and Wildlife Service established an overnight camp on the beach, with wildlife officers and volunteers spending all day herding the whales into deeper water. Efforts to do so were unsuccessful, and the whales again re-beached themselves on Wednesday afternoon. The herding operation was called off later that day, with staff deciding to euthanize the remaining whales to limit their suffering.
