Saturday, Jan.7, 2023, at approximately. 8 a.m., a deceased 30-foot humpback whale was discovered washed up in Atlantic City, near Boardwalk Hall. This is the second whale within 15 days that washed up on the beach in Atlantic City. The fourth in recent months, including the one in Stratmere and one in Wildwood. The Marine Mammal Stranding Center was on site and took blubber and muscle samples before the whale was moved fully ashore. Rather than burying the whale immediately, a full necropsy (examination of an animal after death) will be performed tomorrow, Sunday, Jan. 8. Many people, both on the beach and on social media, expressed their sadness and deep concern about the loss of yet another whale.
UPDATE:
Early NECROPSY RESULTS from the Jan. 7 washed up whale in Atlantic City –From the Marine Mammal Stranding Center: A team of eleven people was assembled to perform the necropsy Jan. 8, including MMSC staff and volunteers, and led by two staff members from Atlantic Marine Conservation Society in New York. The sub-adult whale measured 33.5 feet in length and was a female. Marks from a suspected ship strike were observed just behind the blowhole on the whale’s right side. When that area was opened and examined, a large hematoma (bruise) was observed. Samples of the affected muscle tissue were collected to be analyzed by a pathologist to confirm if this was a contributing factor to the whale’s death. The other significant finding was scars from a possible entanglement, which were also sampled to confirm their origin. Otherwise, the whale appeared to be in good body condition with a thick layer of blubber and fecal material in the colon. At the conclusion of the necropsy, the whale was buried on site. As with all large whales, sample results can take several months to come back before a cause of death can be determined, if at all.
Photos courtesy of Ben Morris
