Australia to euthanise 90 stranded false killer whales after efforts to refloat them fail

Authorities in Australia's Tasmania have said that 90 false killer whales that were stranded on a beach near Arthur River will be euthanased. The decision was taken after repeated efforts to refloat the false killer whales stranded on a remote beach in Tasmania's far north-west failed.

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157 false killer whales wash ashore

A total of 157 false killer whales were discovered on an exposed surf beach on Tuesday afternoon, out of which only 90 were alive on Wednesday.

According to the authorities, when the pod was discovered, 136 of the whales were alive.

Tasmania's environment department said that the ones that survived were growing increasingly "stressed" the longer they were exposed to beaming sun and lashing winds.

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'No options left but to euthanise'

"We have been out in the water this morning and have relocated and attempted to refloat two whales but didn¡¯t have success as the ocean conditions weren¡¯t allowing the animals to get past the break. The animals are continuously restranding,¡± incident controller Shelley Graham said.

"The longer these animals are out stranded, the longer they are suffering. All alternative options have been unsuccessful,¡± Marine biologist Kris Carlyon said.

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What caused the mass stranding

This is said to be the first case of mass stranding of false killer whales in Tasmania in about 50 years.

According to officials, the cause of the mass stranding of the false killer whale pod is unclear and carcasses would be examined for clues.

"Often we don't get to the bottom of the ultimate cause," said Carlyon.

"They have really strong social bonds. One disoriented individual can drag the rest of them ashore."

CREDIT: AP

What are false killer whales

Despite their name, false killer whales are not whales, but a species of oceanic dolphin found in oceans worldwide.

False killer whales can reach up to six metres in length and adults can weigh more than one tonne. They are also known as a highly social species that gathers in pods of 50 or more.

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