A young baby whale that washed up dead on a North Carolina beach last week was killed by a balloon.
The nearly 11-foot Gervais’ beaked whale floated into shallow waters off the Emerald Isle on Oct. 30 and was pronounced dead by the North Carolina Marine Mammal Stranding team, officials said.
The carcass was removed by the team and taken to North Carolina State University’s Marine Science and Technology Center for an autopsy – where researchers determined the mammal had eaten a balloon.
Marine scientists found star-shaped plastic balloons “crumpled and blocking the passage of digesta throughout the gastrointestinal tract” in the stomachs of overly healthy calves, the university center said.
“Unfortunately, this young female whale died from ingesting plastic,” the center said in a statement.
A baby Gervais’s beaked whale was killed by a balloon that washed up on a North Carolina beach. CMAST / Facebook
The female calf, which was still nursing, may have starved to death over time because of the blockage, according to the researchers.
The university center is urging people to think twice before buying plastic or mylar balloons to celebrate a birthday or memorialize a loved one. Instead, it suggests alternatives such as biodegradable paper decorations and advises people to dispose of latex and mylar balloons properly – removing all phases first – if using them.
“This can prevent them from ‘slipping’ and causing unnecessary and tragic harm, causing wildlife to starve and perish over time, as in the case of this poor Gervais’ beaked whale,” the Center for Marine Science and Technology said.
This balloon was found in the stomach of a whale in the Emerald Isle.CMAST / Facebook
Beaked whales, like calves killed by human negligence, are large marine mammals that live deep in the oceans near the edges of continental shelves and beyond. They spend most of their time in the water, making sightings of live beaked whales rare.
According to the center, about 125 marine mammals — including whales, dolphins, porpoises, seals and manatees — wash up on beaches across North Carolina each year.
The causes of strandings vary from natural causes and disease to human interactions such as entanglement in nets, boats and plastics.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
