Gallery Update
GEORGE NEWS - The carcass of a 12m Bryde's whale that washed up on Kleinkrantz beach last week was buried on the beach yesterday morning, Wednesday 14 February.
Marine Ranger for Wilderness, Jonathan Britton said they could not throw it back into sea due to it causing other hazards.
"The whale was buried on the beach behind the dune above the water mark where there is the least amount of disturbance.
"Burying it would allow the smell and the fat to seep through to sea when it decomposes," he said.
Click here for a photo gallery.
The sad sight of a washed-up whale carcass greeted members of the Stranded Marine Animal Rescue Team (Smart) last Friday morning, 9 February.
The team was called out at around 11:30 after members of Working on Fire (WoF) saw the carcass.
According to Dr Gwenith Penry, the principal investigator of the Southern African Bryde's whale project and post-doctoral researcher at Nelson Mandela University, the animal was a fully grown adult male.
Members of Smart measure the mammal.
"They reach maturity after about 15 years and can live for an average of 40 - 50. It's difficult to give the exact age of this specific animal," she told the George Herald.
"Unfortunately the cause of death cannot be determined as it has been dead for a week to 10 days already.
"There are no obvious signs of injury and toxicology / pathology tests can only be done on fresh carcasses. It is possible that it died of natural causes."
Removing the carcass
Penry said removing large whales is a very expensive and logistically difficult task.
"An animal this size weighs around 15 tons. In ideal situations it would be best to leave the carcass to decompose in the environment as it provides food for other organisms and puts nutrients back into the ecosystem.
"Obviously this becomes problematic when humans live nearby a decomposing carcass, and there are concerns about it attracting sharks."
Bryde's whales have three ridges running along their top jaw, a feature unique to the species. Photo: Gwenith Penry
She says the delay in moving this specific animal is due to several factors, including getting the necessary permission to use heavy trucks on the beach as well as waiting for suitable conditions.
Facts about the Bryde's whale
Bryde's whales live on our coastline all year long. They feed on small fish such as sardine and anchovy.
According to Penry they can be seen as close as just behind the surf zone and 200m deep into the water.
They don't go beyond the continental shelf.
It's always a sad sight to see an animal like this washed out.
The South African population of Bryde's whales was assessed as vulnerable in 2016 during the Red Data List assessment.
There are currently only about 500 along the coast.
They are masters of stealth, moving at 35 - 40 km/h and are very difficult to follow and get close to.
They are baleen whales, which means they don't have teeth and take huge gulps of water and fish to feed.
They then push the water out using their large tongues, leaving the fish behind.
They have a prominent dorsal fin situated two thirds down the body near the tail.
Calves are 4m long at birth.
The carcass of this 12m Bryde's whale washed up on Kleinkrantz beach last Friday.
Read a previous article: Whale carcass washed out on beach
ARTICLE & PHOTOS: KRISTY KOLBERG, GEORGE HERALD JOURNALIST
'We bring you the latest George, Garden Route news'
