About 500 pilot dolphins have died stranded in New Zealand

Mass strandings of whales have occurred in New Zealand. About 500 pilot dolphins have died in the remote Chatham archipelago, the government announced on Tuesday.

The Department of Environmental Protection said “two large schools” of cetaceans washed ashore and the survivors were killed. No rescue operation has been carried out due to the remoteness of these shark infested islands.

About 250 stranded experimental dolphins were found on Friday on Chatham Island, the largest of the archipelago’s islands, and about 240 on Pitt Island three days later. Authorities said that, given the archipelago’s 800km distance from New Zealand, a rescue operation was impossible.

“For fear of shark attack on humans and cetaceans, the surviving experimental dolphins were euthanized by our team to spare them further suffering,” said Dave Lundquist, marine technical advisor to the government. “A decision like this is not taken lightly. But in cases like this, this was the easiest option.” The bodies will be left at the site.

And 200 cetaceans died in Tasmania in September

Such strands are no stranger to the Chatham archipelago, with the largest dating back to 1918, when a thousand pilot dolphins perished. Just over two weeks ago, about 200 pilot dolphins perished on a beach in Tasmania, Australia. 44 mammals were released. The causes of these major leads are not fully known.

These pilot whales, which can reach 6 meters in length, can scurry after a sick member of the herd. Bad weather or the presence of predators can also force them to change their route.

Official figures show that around 300 experimental dolphins are stranded in New Zealand each year. It is not uncommon for individual strandings to include groups of 20 to 50 cetaceans, or even hundreds when a large group of mammals is involved.