Governor Josh Green, M.D. | DLNR News Release-UPDATE-Kauai Sperm Whale

(KAPA‘A, KAUA‘I) – The result in of death of a 56-foot-very long, 120,000-pound sperm whale, that appeared on the reef fronting Lydgate Park, won’t most likely be established for some time.

Nowadays, a pair of excavators, just one huge and one compact, supplied by Kaua‘i County, built many tries to totally free the whale from the shoreline and shift it on to the beach. High tide brought it to shore overnight.

This afternoon, a significant excavator from the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) joined the two county machines, in yet another endeavor to free of charge the massive animal from the shoreline, the place it’s embedded in soaked sand.

The moment the carcass is on dry ground, Dr. Kristi West and her staff from the University of Hawai‘i Wellbeing and Stranding Lab will begin a preliminary investigation into the whale’s dying.

“There are several achievable will cause which includes illness, accidents from a vessel strike, entanglement with discarded fishing line, or ingestion of plastic marine debris,” West described.

Authorities won’t be capable to settle on an specific result in of death until eventually lab tests are returned in numerous months. “It’s important for us to probe every demise of our maritime mammals, sentinel animals like this whale, as that can present info and details that assists notify administration decisions and can provide a additional entire photo of species health and fitness.”

Today’s procedure was less than the watchful eye of Jamie Thomton, the Kaua‘i Stranding Coordinator with NOAA Fisheries. “Based on how fresh new the carcass is, the whale probably died in the previous handful of days.”

Indigenous Hawaiian practitioners also considered the day’s activities and performed cultural protocols during the working day.

Mimi Olry, the Kaua‘i Stranding Reaction Coordinator with the DLNR Division of Aquatic Means (DAR) said sperm whales really do not wash ashore on Kaua‘i all that generally. “This just one occurred at a fast paced seaside park, so quite a few folks saw it and viewed today’s efforts.”

Law enforcement strains were moved again as large gear arrived on the scene and officers from the DLNR Division of Conservation and Means Enforcement (DOCARE) had to shoo many men and women off the beach or from the shut park spot for their basic safety.

Thomton mentioned each individual stranding provides various worries. Once the whale is on the sand he thinks the post-mortem examination will go smoothly.

The stays of the whale will be buried in an place that has been approved by the DLNR Condition Historical Preservation Division (SHPD) to make sure no iwi kūpuna will be disturbed.

Massive mammal strandings display the large amount of collaboration involving federal, condition, and county agencies.

Sperm whales are outlined as endangered below the Endangered Species Act and are secured under the ESA and the Marine Mammal Safety Act. It is in opposition to both of those federal and state regulation to take away any system components or bones from these whales. 

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RESOURCES 

Hd video – Stranded sperm whale on Kaua‘i (Jan. 28, 2023):

https://vimeo.com/793752929

(New seem from Jamie Thomton, Mimi Olry, and Kristi West)

Photos – Stranded sperm whale on Kaua‘i (Jan. 28, 2023):

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/4x4ge5uvl1of19gshgjbw/h?dl=&rlkey=i0zqna9qnycp4z3hv1rxnmvx8

Media Make contact with: 

Dan Dennison

Senior Communications Supervisor

(808) 587-0396

[email protected]