BALI, Indonesia — Two young whales are stranded on Indonesia's resort island of Bali and will die on the beach because they are too weak to survive even if returned to the water, an official said Sunday.
Attempts to rescue the beached whales, a rare occurrence on Bali, have been abandoned, said Bali's Fisheries and Marines Department officer Nyoman Wirna Ariwangsa.
"They are in critical condition now," he said.
The two short-finned pilot whales, a protected species, were both extensively scratched and bruised, apparently from fishing nets at sea. Their carcasses will be buried before they decompose, Ariwangsa said.
The pair was among four whales that washed ashore Saturday near Tanah Lot Beach, one of the most popular and picturesque tourist destinations on the island province, Ariwangsa said.
Dozens of locals hauled all four of the 7-foot (2.1-meter), 1,000 pound (450 kilogram) whales into the shallow water. Fishing boats successfully led two back to sea, he said. But waves washed another two back to shore.
"Powerful tidal waves are believed to have separated them from their pod and left them stranded here," Ariwangsa said.
Live whales rarely become beached on Bali, although 10 dead whales — eight short-finned pilot and two giant sperm — washed ashore in February in stormy weather.
Locals butchered their carcasses for the oil, which they use as a traditional medicine.
Pilot whales stranded on Tabanan Beach
Jakarta Post 30 Nov 09;
TABANAN: Four short-finned pilot whales were found stranded along Nyanyi Beach in Tabanan regency, some 20 kilometers west of Denpasar, on Saturday.
Local fishermen found the stranded mammals alive on Saturday morning.
The two-meter long whales weigh about 100 to 200 kilograms each.
A number of members from the Bala Wisata beach security guards and local residents attempted to save the whales and get them back into the water.
Two of the whales were too weak to swim after suffering serious wounds.
Agus Rochdianto, spokesman for the Tabanan fishery agency, told news portal beritabali.com many whales had been found stranded along Balin's coast recently.
"We have also found pilot whales stranded in Serangan Beach last January and a humpback whale in Salamadeg beach," he said.
Many factors contribute to this phenomenon including changes in sea conditions such as unusually strong currents and ship sonar systems that affect the mammals's echolocation ability. - JP