Dead juvenile Minke whale washes ashore near Bolinas, California

By Jesse Garnier

2:02 am PST
December 30, 2011

Getting herself tangled in a web of fishing line may be the culprit in the death of a young, female Minke whale that washed ashore in the Point Reyes National Seashore.

The minke whale is a smallish member of the baleen family that also includes the humpback and blue whale. (Marc Füeg/Flickr)

High tides prevented researchers from reaching the whale Thursday, which was found north of Bolinas near Alamere Falls.

A spokesman for the Marine Mammal Center told the Marin IJ that the whale “wasn’t in the best of shape.”

A full-grown Minke whale is typically about 24 feet long and might weigh four to five tons. Whoppers can get up to 14 tons. Onlookers told the IJ this whale appeared to be a juvenile. … Continue …

sfbay.ca

Fair Use: Educational

Dead Minke whale found near Bolinas, Ca.

By Mark Prado

Marin Independent Journal

12/29/2011

The body of a young Minke whale washed ashore in the Point Reyes National Seashore this week, officials with the Marine Mammal Center said.

The dead whale turned up near Alamere Falls, north of Bolinas. Researchers from the mammal center and Academy of Sciences in San Francisco had hoped to spend Thursday taking samples from the whale, but high tides prevented access. The cause of death was not known.

The whale was believed to be a female and while an exact length was not known, it was described by onlookers as a juvenile.

“It wasn’t in the best shape,” said Jim Oswald, spokesman for the mammal center. “There is some question if this was an entanglement issue,” he said, referring to a possible tangle with old fishing line.

Point Reyes National Seashore officials said Minke whales are seen off the coast from …Continue …

marinij.com

Fair Use: Educational