Sperm whale dies off the Pompano Beach coast, drifts out to sea, Florida

December 16, 2012

By Mike Clary, Sun Sentinel

Pompano Beach — The carcass of a 40-foot sperm whale that apparently died as it neared the beach Sunday afternoon later drifted out to sea, thereby ending a drama that had drawn the attention of beachgoers and scientists alike.

Onlookers, including members of the Marine Animal Rescue Society, look toward the ocean on Sunday, Dec. 16, 2012. (Sun Sentinel/Joe Cavaretta / December 16, 2012)

“There is very little you can do for a whale that is ill or seriously injured,” said Stefan Harzen, a marine biologist from Jupiter who responded to the scene offshore from Northeast 10th Street.

Harzen’s wife, Barbara Brunnick, also a marine biologists, paddled out to a Broward Sheriff’s boat monitoring the whale’s movements and made the identification.

The whale was spotted about noon offshore near the 600 block of North Ocean Boulevard, according to the Broward Sheriff’s Office.

Also responding were two members of the Marine Animal Rescue Society, David Bremer and Kim Geng.

Officers from the Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission were also at the scene.

Although pilot whales occasionally strand themselves in South Florida — a pod of 22 came ashore in September in Saint Lucie County — sperm whales are rarely seen close to shore, said Harzen, who works with the Taras Oceanographic Foundation in Jupiter.

If the animal does wash up, scientists may have an opportunity to investigate the cause of death. Or, said Harzen, the whale’s remains may disappear at sea.

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