The gray whale, which was observed around San Francisco Bay for 75 days, washed up on the shore with evidence of vessel impacts.
Gray Whale in San Franacisco Bay
Last weekend, a dead gray whale was discovered on Point Reyes National Seashore after being spotted in San Francisco Bay for 75 days, a record for the species.
It had at least two vessel strikes, according to local scientists, and had gotten worse since being discovered in February.
After the National Park Service discovered the whale's body floating a mile off of Point Reyes National Seashore on Saturday, which later washed up on North Beach, experts were made aware of the animal.
On the north end of Agate Beach over the same weekend, another dead gray whale was discovered.
Gray whales are sentinels for the health of the ocean, but they face several human-caused hazards, such as vessel hits, according to Dr. Pádraig Duignan, the Marine Mammal Center director of pathology.
This crucial pathologic and observational information can provide a stronger argument regarding the problems that this species is currently facing and how to solve them.
Vessel Strikes
Following necropsies on both animals, a group of 11 researchers from the Marine Mammal Center and the California Academy of Sciences found that the first whale, a 39-foot-long male who had previously been observed in good physical condition, had sustained some fresh wounds.
Scientists had observed the whale while it was still alive and noted the animal had a scar that was progressively mending down its back, with more sea lice growing around it.
However, during the necropsy, the researchers discovered that the animal's ribs, spine, and skull were cracked and that it also appeared to be experiencing recent hemorrhage and injury to the muscles that connect the head to the body.
The whale's physical damage was compared by researchers to a severe whiplash injury sustained in a car accident, and because the wounds were healing at different rates, they assumed that the animal had been struck twice in succession.
The whale's protracted demise was probably brought on by one strike to its back when it was in the bay, according to the Marine Mammal Center.
The whale suffered a considerably more severe injury to its head, which happened just before it passed away.
Due to the seriousness and extent of the damage to the top of the skull, the proximity to the brain, and the straining of the animal's neck by the impact, this strike is the most likely reason for the animal's demise.
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Four Whales in the Bay Area This Year
Based on its fat reserves and several layers of blubber and muscle, the second whale was determined to be a 37-foot-long adult male in outstanding physical condition.
The whale was seen there on May 1 and 2, and the necropsy team concluded that the plant fibers and crustaceans detected in its stomach contents were likely eaten by the whale from the bottom of the bay.
According to SFGate, scientists determined that the whale's death was sudden and are investigating whether other variables, such as human interaction, may have contributed to the fatality even though the animal showed no symptoms of an original fracture or other physical injuries.
According to CNN, this is the third and fourth stranding of a gray whale in the Bay Area so far this year.
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