One of my colleagues, posted a blog last week about a whale that had been found dead at the bow of the Sapphire Princess! National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Service have said that the whale found last week on the bow of Sapphire Princess was likely dead before it was struck by the ship.
Though these preliminary results are not definitive (it could be several months before final results are available, according to the NOAA's statement), this scenario is considered likely for a number of reasons, such as: The whale was already missing a fin, possibly due to an earlier boat strike, causing debilitation and/or death. The whale was also already missing part of its jaw. According to the NOAA, the loss of the fin "may have been followed by killer whale scavenging, as a large portion of the ventral pleats in the lower jaw was missing (an area of the body typically targeted by killer whales)."
Collected samples -- skin, muscle, blubber, liver, kidney, ovaries, stomach contents, parasites, urine and faeces, and one recovered eye -- will be further examined to rule out scenarios such as exposure to toxins and genetics. A post-mortem in a similar strike last year involving Sapphire Princess concluded that whale was also already dead when it and the ship collided in Alaska.
This is all good news for animal lovers who were concerned for the welfare of sea creatures being at risk from cruise ships. Does anyone have any thoughts on this?
My thought is that this must be a huge PR problem for that cruise liner! I'm curious about what caused the whale's death.
ReplyDelete