More than 50 pilot whales have died in a mass stranding off the Scottish coast

lifestyle

By Reuters

July 17, 2023 | 2:09 p.m

LONDON, July 17 – More than 50 pioneer whales have died in Scotland after being stranded on a beach on the Isle of Lewis, the country’s biggest mass stranding in decades.

Authorities were alerted to the incident on Sunday morning around 0600 GMT, and subsequent attempts to refloat more than a dozen whales alive were unsuccessful.

Rescuers later decided to euthanize the stranded whales for welfare reasons.

In total, 55 whales died and one is believed to have survived.

The British Divers Charity Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) said a female had been found with a vaginal prolapse and suspected the entire pod had become stranded after one of the whales suffered complications from childbirth.

“Pilot whales are known for their strong social bonds, so often when one whale has difficulty and breaks through, the rest follow,” BDMLR said.

The Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme (SMASS) said it would start by examining the bodies of mammals to determine the cause of the stranding.

“Over the next several days we will be conducting sampling and necropsy of pilot whales to gather as much data as possible to better understand the health of these animals and why they are stranded,” Smas said in a statement on Instagram.