HUGE 59 foot Fin Whale washes up dead at Lynmouth *PICS* *VIDEO*

9 August 2011

The body of a huge fin whale measuring 59ft (18m) has been washed ashore at Lynmouth in Devon

A 59ft (18m) long fin whale has washed up dead on the north Devon coast.

The fin whale, the world’s second largest animal and a globally-endangered species, washed ashore at Lynmouth.

Swansea Coastguard said the alarm was raised just before 08:00 BST, by a member of the public.

British Divers Marine Life Rescue members, who examined the whale, said it had extensive cuts to its body and part of its tail is missing.

Protective cordon

The Natural History Museum has been notified and post-mortem tests may be carried out on the creature to establish how it died.

A cordon has been set up around the whale, which has begun to decompose, to protect members of the public from infection.

Fin whales are normally found in large numbers in the Bay of Biscay, but a pod of about 20 were sighted in the Celtic Deep, between north Cornwall and south west Pembrokeshire, in May.

The have powerful sounds, allowing them to communicate with each other over vast distances.

bbc.co.uk  *VIDEO LINK*

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The death of one of nature’s giants: 55ft-long fin whale dies after lying stranded on beach

By Daily Mail Reporter

9th August 2011

Tragic ending: A giant fin whale washed ashore at Lynmouth, Devon, and is believed to have been dead for a day or two

A giant rare whale has washed up on a beach at a British beauty spot.

The 55ft fin whale – the world’s second largest animal and a globally-endangered species – washed ashore at Lynmouth, Devon.

Swansea Coastguard received a call around 8.30am today saying the animal had been marooned on the pebble beach at Lynmouth, close to the Cliff Railway.

Friendly giant: The 55ft fin whale is the world’s second largest animal and a globally-endangered species

A Lynmouth coastguard source said the animal had been dead for a day or two.

Lynmouth coastguards are currently in talks with Swansea coastguards about how best to remove the animal.

The fin whale is the second largest animal after the blue whale. It can grow to lengths of up to 85ft and weigh up to 80 tonnes.

Fin whales are most common in the southern hemisphere but smaller populations have been known to inhabit the North Atlantic.

Weighty: The fin whale (one pictured here in Alaska) can grow to lengths of up to 85ft and weigh up to 80 tonnes when fully grown

Visitor Peter Osborne, from Wimborne in Dorset, discovered the whale when he arrived at the resort’s seafront car park, under Holladay Hill, to do some early morning fishing.

He contacted the Lynmouth Coastguard Station but when staff arrived, the whale was found to be dead.

Among the first people on the scene were Andy Cleverdon, former Station Officer at Lynmouth Coastguard Station and Heidi Fargher-Harding, wife of the current station officer David Harding, are both medics with the British Divers Marine Life Rescue organisation.

Andy said: ‘I have looked at the records over the years and I am pretty sure that this is the first stranding of a whale for more than 20 years on the Lynmouth beaches and rocks.

‘It is difficult to tell whether the whale was still alive or already dead when it became stranded.

‘We were able to identify it through certain characteristics and the first thoughts were that it was a female, but it was fairly battered through the contact with the rocks.

‘It was a sad sight.~ Andy Cleverdon added that contact had been made with the National History Museum and there was a possibility of a post-mortem being carried out on the spot if a team had been able to reach the site before the morning tide.

There were some fears that the tide and the prevailing wind might carry the dead whale onto the section of beach close to Lynmouth’s harbour and jetty.

A spokesman for British Marine Life Divers Rescue, which attended the fin whale stranding, said efforts would be made to find the cause of death.

He said: ‘High tide is around 5pm so it doesn’t leave too much time for an investigation.

‘It will be down to the local council to dispose of the carcass.

‘It must be removed from or tethered to the beach as it could be a hazard to shipping it floats out to sea.

‘There’s a sizeable population of fin whales that live off the coast of Pembrokeshire – it could have been a member of that group.’

dailymail.co.uk

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FIN WHALE FACTS

The fin whale is the world’s second largest animal and a globally-endangered species.

It can grow to lengths of up to 85ft and weigh up to 80 tonnes.

They are most common in the southern hemisphere but smaller populations have been known to inhabit the North Atlantic.

Their diet includes small schooling fish, squid and crustaceans

The fin whale was heavily hunted during the 20th century

Full physical maturity is attained between 25 and 30 years and they live to around 94 years

A newborn measures about 21ft and weights around 1.8 tonnes