More than 200 whales have died off the east coast of New Zealand. The rescue teams were unable to return the whales to the sea due to the threat of great white sharks in the area. Two weeks ago, almost 200 whales died on the west coast of Tasmania in Australia
More than 200 whales have died after stranding off New Zealand’s remote Chatham Islands, New Zealand’s conservation department said on Saturday. Department officials said in a statement that they could not return the whales stranded on the island because of “the risk of shark attacks to both humans and the whales themselves.” The Chatham Islands are about 800 km east of New Zealand. Mass whale deaths are quite common on the islands, although marine biologists who study the phenomenon are not sure what causes it.
The whales were in distress on the island on Friday. “The Chatham Islands are a very challenging place for whales, the place is known for great white sharks.” This was announced by the Jonah animal rescue organization based in New Zealand.
According to the conservation department, some of the whales that survived were euthanized or humanely destroyed to prevent further suffering. “All the whales have now died naturally at the site,” the department said. Two weeks ago almost 200 whales died on a beach on the west coast of Tasmania, Australia.
New Zealand has one of the world’s highest rates of whale strikes, including in 2017, when over 400 whales died off the northern tip of the South Island. About 1,000 whales died in mass strikes back in 1918 in the Chatham Islands, making it one of the largest mass whale deaths ever.