Almost 100 whales have died on the beaches of a distant collection of islands in the Pacific Ocean following a mass stranding issue . According to theNew Zealand Department of Conservation ( DOC ) , faculty were notify of the stranding at noon on November 22 and take care at 3 pm , where they institute 97 pilot film whales and three dolphinfish run aground at Waitangi West Beach , Chatham Islands .
Twenty - six buffer whales were still live , but had to be euthanized by faculty due to their utmost weakness .
“ Only 26 of the hulk were still live at this power point , the bulk of them come along very frail , and were euthanised due to the rough sea conditions and almost certainty of there being heavy blank sharks in the piddle , which are brought in by a stranding like this , ” tell DOC Biodiversity Ranger Jemma Welch in astatement .
accord to the DOC , a serious power outage prevent communication and detain the rangers from reaching the area until almost three hours after the alert was received .
The Chatham Islands is an archipelago of 10 islands around 800 kilometers ( 500 nautical mile ) off the sea-coast of New Zealand that is home plate to around 600 residents . Attracted to the rich food sources that exist around the islands , many species of marine life make the Chatham Islands their home .
Despite very few sightings of whales and dolphin , the country is a stranding hot spot for airplane pilot whales , alongside sperm whales , beaked whales , and various dolphin species . In 1918 , thelargest whale strandingin New Zealand account take place on these island , with up to 1,000 somebody decease on the beach .
Whale strandings have increased in frequency over recent years , but researchers are still ineffectual to pinpoint exactly why . This passel run aground followsAustralia ’s large hulk strandingon record back in September , where more than 450 whales beached in Tasmania .
One potential explanation is climate variety drive solid food sources closer to the coast , where pod of whales cantake a wrong turnor become trapped . mood change - trigger off upshot such as high waves may also pull a fast one on whales ' innate navigation organisation into thinking they are further from the shoring than they are .
Other plausible explanations include extreme weather , increased predation by shark and killer whales , andmilitary echo sounder exercisesdriving whale into unfamiliar territory .
Whale strandings are not uncommon in New Zealand , with around 300 becoming stranded each twelvemonth . While the exact cause remains strange , an increase in strandings does not forecast well for some of the more endangered whale coinage , and read how they come about is full of life in conservation efforts of the hereafter .
