On a Co Mayo beach, the carcasses of a big fin whale were found washed up, reports The Mirror.
The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) reports that the 20.7-meter whale was “severely emaciated” and believed to have “recently” died.
A huge fin whale was found dead on a beach in County Mayo, according to a report sent to members of an IWDG stranding programme over the weekend. On Sunday, the dead whale, which belongs to an endangered species, was discovered on Ross Beach close to the Co Mayo village of Killala.
According to a post on their official Facebook page, the IWDG said: “Therefore, the cause of death was almost certainly due to the fact that it had not fed in quite some time, for reasons unknown,” reports The Mirror.
“Samples were collected for our Deep Diving and Rare Species Investigation Programme (DDRIP) which will be used to support future research projects on fin whales in Irish waters. The distinctive dorsal fin provides an opportunity to share images with photo-id catalogues, both the IWDG one and others within Europe, to see if this whale is known from elsewhere,” reports The Mirror.
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