Current:Home > InvestMassive endangered whale washes up on Oregon beach entangled, emaciated and covered in wounds from killer whales-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
Massive endangered whale washes up on Oregon beach entangled, emaciated and covered in wounds from killer whales
View Date:2024-12-23 15:49:31
A member of one of the world's largest whale species was found washed up on an Oregon shore this week, emaciated, entangled and covered in what appears to be wounds from another whale species. The 46-foot-long fin whale, which was dead when discovered, is one of roughly 11,000 species members in the region.
NOAA Fisheries West Coast first announced the stranding at Sunset Beach State Park near the Washington border on Monday, showing the whale washed up on shore with what appears to be a thick rope wrapped around the top of its mouth.
Officials conducted a necropsy on the subadult male whale and found that it was "thin and emaciated" and "likely died from an underlying illness." The necropsy team is working to identify an illness that could have resulted in its death, but physically, it appeared as though the animal had come across other issues before washing ashore.
"The whale came ashore entangled," NOAA said, saying the entanglement "appeared to be fresh and superficial." "The team also recorded wounds from killer whales, called 'rake marks.'"
Rake marks are when killer whales, or orcas, use their teeth to wound other animals, according to the Center for Whale Research. The behavior is thought to be a form of either rough play or aggression, although the center says that some rake marks "can be severe and penetrate deep into the flesh."
More information from the pathology report is expected within a few weeks, NOAA said.
According to NOAA's latest population stock assessment, there are roughly 11,000 fin whales in the waters of the Pacific Northwest region. Fishing equipment entanglements and vessel strikes are among the biggest threats to that population.
The endangered species is a form of baleen whale, meaning their mouths are filled with keratin-based baleen rather than teeth, allowing them to filter small prey from the water. They can live nearly a century, growing to be up to 85 feet long and 80 tons.
- In:
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- Endangered Species
- Oregon
- Whales
Li Cohen is a social media producer and trending content writer for CBS News.
veryGood! (393)
Related
- 24 more monkeys that escaped from a South Carolina lab are recovered unharmed
- 'Only Murders in the Building' Episode 3: How to watch Season 3; schedule, cast
- Silicon Valley's latest hype: Eyeball-scanning silver orbs to confirm you're human
- 2 Nigerian men extradited to US to face sexual extortion charges after death of Michigan teenager
- San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich had mild stroke this month, team says
- 3 men found dead in car outside Indianapolis elementary school
- Far-right populist emerges as biggest vote-getter in Argentina’s presidential primary voting
- Maui wildfires death toll rises to 93, making it the deadliest natural disaster in Hawaii since it became a state
- Hill House Home’s Once-A-Year Sale Is Here: Get 30% off Everything & up to 75% off Luxury Dresses
- Prosecutors have started presenting Georgia election investigation to grand jury
Ranking
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has a long record of promoting anti-vaccine views
- Busy Philipps Reflects on Struggle to Be Diagnosed With ADHD
- Norwegian climber says it would have been impossible to carry injured Pakistani porter down snowy K2
- Pregnant Kourtney Kardashian Showcases Baby Bump in Garden Walk Selfie
- Watch a rescuer’s cat-like reflexes pluck a kitten from mid-air after a scary fall
- Lucas Glover tops Patrick Cantlay to win FedEx St. Jude Championship on first playoff hole
- How Jonathan Scott Became Zooey Deschanel's MVP
- Horoscopes Today, August 13, 2023
Recommendation
-
The results are in: Peanut the Squirrel did not have rabies, county official says
-
'Last Voyage of the Demeter': Biggest changes from the Dracula book to movie (Spoilers!)
-
A tiny house gives them hope: How a homeless family in Brazil got a fresh start
-
At least 20 Syrian soldiers killed in ISIS bus ambush, activists say
-
Mississippi rising, Georgia falling in college football NCAA Re-Rank 1-134 after Week 11
-
Drugs and prostitution in the office: 'Telemarketers' doc illuminates world you don't know
-
Is Social Security running out? When funds run dry solution may be hard to swallow.
-
Federal judges review Alabama’s new congressional map, lack of 2nd majority-Black district