CHENNAI: Activists found a 22.5 ft tropical whale dead in the wee hours of Monday morning at Kanathur Beach, which is about 30 km from Chennai.The cause of death is suspected to be an injury caused by a commercial fishing vessel.
The stranded whale, was a juvenile male that weighed about 3 tons. The tail was 1.3 m long and flipper, 80 cm in length. These whales, when they breathe through the blow hole on the upper side of their body, can blow water up to a height of 13 ft. While there is no local population study, nearly 1 lakh tropical whales are estimated to exist world-over.
“The whale had a deep cut mark on its tail (fluke), indicating that it was hurt by a motorised boat, most possibly a commercial fishing vessel,” said Sachin Bhosale, the District Forest Officer (DFO), Kancheepuram.
Members from the Sea Turtle Protection Force, who found the animal in the inter-tidal zone of Kanathur Beach, along with activist Supraja Dharini from the TREE Foundation, informed the State Forest department. “The local fishermen said the young whale might have been caught in a trawl net, towed by the rope tied to the tail and then discarded near shore when there could have been no buyers for the whale,” said Dharini.
These tropical whales, also known as Bryde’s whales, are creatures of the tropical and subtropical zones and generally stay within 40° from the equator on either sides. They are found both offshore and near the coast in many areas. They are known to approach boats and ships out of curiosity. “Whales of this species are not known to make extensive north to south migrations, though short migrations have been documented,” said Dharini.
“Fishermen will not usually transport the whale to the shore. It costs a lot of diesel and know that there will be no buyers,” said a senior official from the Fisheries Department, adding that the whale must have gotten hurt after it strayed and came close to the coast. The ability of whales to navigate using sound, is not very effective in shallow areas. The official said the exact time and reason of death has not been confirmed. He however pointed that the cut indicates that it was injured by a motor vessel.