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A sperm whale was found washed up in Klungkung, Bali on March 14, 2016.© Instagram @widia_pranata
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March 14, 2016 - EARTH - The following constitutes the latest reports of unusual and symbolic animal behavior, mass die-offs, beaching and stranding of mammals, and the appearance of rare creatures.
Giant sperm whale found dead on East Bali beach
A beached whale, reportedly measuring 16.2 meters in length, was found in Klungkung, East Bali early on Monday morning.Local fishermen Negah Sunarta, 37, and Nengah Darpa, 35, found the whale at Batu Tumpeng Beach, Gelgel Village when they were catching lobster.
"We usually look for lobsters on this beach. We were shocked with the whale. After we approached, it turned out to be dead," Sunarta said, as quoted in a report by Praise Sukiswanti, published by Sindo News.
The whale caused quite the commotion as hundreds of curious people apparently gathered around it to gawk and take pictures.
Unfortunately, as you can see from some of these photos posted to social media, the dead whale was not allowed to rest in peace right away as people saw a photo op and jumped right on.
Breaking News ! 16 M. Whale stranded on Pantai batu tumpeng klungkug / Bali this Monday morning 14/03/2016 at 4 AM pic.twitter.com/K02vvd7jXY— bali-arrangements (@003468) March 14, 2016
Along with the many photos all over Bali social media, the presence of the poor washed up whale was confirmed by Klungkung Police Chief Arendra Wahyudi, who said on Monday afternoon that police were still coordinating with the Klungkung Department of Fisheries and Marine Affairs, the Natural Resource Conservation body (KSDA), and the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPKB) to remove the whale from the beach.
A KSDA officer, Wayan Surata, told Tribun Bali that the whale was Physeter macrochepalus, or a sperm whale.
He added that he believes the whale was separated from its group and must have drifted off before it was stranded on the East Bali beach, that's part of the whale's migratory route. - Coconuts Bali.
Dolphins, whales found dead on Queensland beach
A female whale, her calf and a dolphin have been found dead on Sunshine Coast beaches in Queensland.
The pygmy sperm whale calf and dolphin became stranded at Peregian Beach, while the mother whale was found about 2km north near Noosa on Sunday, the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection says.
Samples have been taken from the animals and a local council is arranging for the carcasses to be removed.
Photos of the animals were posted to the Peregian Beach Village Facebook page on Sunday.
"Sadly 3 sea mammals have washed up dead on the early morning high tide," the post read.
"The Coolum Coast Care team are on the scene with Humpback Whale research scientist Dr. Michael Noad, who just happened to be coming down to check the surf."
The post said it wasn't known how the mammals died, but it appeared the whales had been bitten by sharks. - 9 News.
More than 1 million sea slugs wash onto Thai beach
Marine experts are attempting to understand why more than a million sea slugs washed up on a Phuket beach this morning.The name 'sea slug' is a common name used specifically for gastropods that are not shell-bearing or appear not to be shell-bearing. Experts believe that the sea slugs found on Kamala Beach are, in fact, sea hares. However, they have yet to determine the exact species.
"Adult sea hares are mostly large, bulky creatures. Juveniles are usually not noticed along the shoreline," said Kongkiat Kittiwattanawong from the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC). "However, that doesn't appear to be the case here."
WATCH: Slimy balls infest Kamala Beach.
'Sea hare' is a direct translation from the Latin lepus marinus, which is derived from their rounded shape and from the two long rhinophores that project upwards from their heads, thought to look similar to the ears of a hare.
"A team was sent up there to collect samples of both the animals and the seawater to determine exactly what has caused this," said Charatsee Aungtonya, a marine expert from the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) Region 5.
Officials at the PMBC and the DMCR Region 5 were made aware of the situation after local social media networks became abuzz with pictures of the tiny marine creatures on the shore of Kamala. - Phuket Gazette.
