Dozens of whales strand at infamous New Zealand bay | New Zealand Information

Rescuers scramble to save lots of 49 long-finned pilot whales at Farewell Spit Bay, the scene of at the least 10 pilot whale strandings up to now 15 years.

Rescuers have been racing on Monday to save lots of dozens of pilot whales that beached on a stretch of New Zealand coast infamous for mass strandings, wildlife officers mentioned.

The Division of Conservation (DOC) mentioned the pod of 49 long-finned pilot whales was discovered early on Monday at Farewell Spit, about 90 kilometres (55 miles) north of the South Island vacationer city of Nelson.

By mid-afternoon, 9 of the whales had died and greater than 60 folks have been working to maintain the survivors alive for an try to refloat them at excessive tide, the DOC mentioned.

“Marine mammal medics will help with refloating the whales and caring for them on the seaside, retaining them cool and moist till they are often refloated,” a DOC spokeswoman mentioned.

Farewell Spit is a 26-kilometre hook of sand that protrudes into the ocean at Golden Bay.

It has been the scene of at the least 10 pilot whale strandings up to now 15 years, the latest in February 2017, when nearly 700 of the marine mammals beached, leading to 250 deaths.

Scientists are not sure about why the seaside is so lethal, though one idea is that the spit creates a shallow seabed within the bay that interferes with the whales’ sonar navigation techniques.