Australian authorities have made the difficult decision to euthanize 90 whales that were stranded on the shores of Tasmania after failed attempts to return them to the water.
A total of 157 pilot whales became stranded in the past 48 hours near Arthur River in northwest Tasmania. Only 90 of these whales survived. Pilot whales can grow up to six meters in length and often form pods of 50 or more whales.
In photographs released by authorities, dozens of dolphins can be seen lying on the sand. “After veterinary assessments, we made the decision to euthanize the animals”, said Shelley Graham, wildlife protection officer, in a statement to the press.
“We have exhausted all of our options”
Biologist Chris Carlion also commented on the difficulty of the situation: “The attempts to return the dolphins, each possibly weighing over a ton, to the water have failed. This is probably the toughest incident I’ve seen in my 16 years of experience in this field in Tasmania. It’s extremely remote and very difficult to access. We did everything we could this morning, but we have exhausted our options for successfully returning them to the water.”
Mass strandings of whales are occurring more frequently around the world, and this phenomenon is thought to be linked to human activity.
