A stranded whale was reported on Druridge Bay, Northumberland, yesterday morning. BDMLR medics and a local vet attended the stranding.
The whale, originally thought to be a minke but later identified as a sei whale, was in very poor nutritional condition, and thus the decision was made to euthanise. A post-mortem examination was carried out by the Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme (CSIP) yesterday afternoon, confirming that the juvenile sei whale was in moderate to poor nutritional condition, with no evidence of recent feeding. Signs that the whale had undergone a period of starvation were also found.
While sei whale strandings are unusual in the UK, this is the second UK sei whale stranding this year, the first being off Arbroath, Scotland, earlier this month.
For more information on this stranding see the BDMLR website, or follow the Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme on facebook.
