Dead whale washes up in East Atlantic Beach

A 33-foot sub-adult female humpback whale was found dead on the shores of East Atlantic Beach. Nassau County police said the mammal was found near Rochester Avenue on Dec. 26. This is the 14th whale dead whale to be beached on New York state shores this summer.

Artie Raslich, a photographer for Gotham Whale, an organization that catalogs and monitors whales in New York’s waters, was at the scene. He wrote on his blog — artieraslich.com/blog — that the whale appeared not to have sustained any major wounds that would lead to its death.

The Atlantic Marine Conservation Society was called to the scene to perform a necropsy to determine the cause of death and then remove the whale. A bacterial infection has killed other whales in the area, according to Gotham Whale.

Findings may take months to come back, although initial findings indicate that it’s death was an “acute mortality event.” Robert A. DiGiovanni Jr., the Conservation Society’s chief scientist, hopes that these tests can help them protect whales in the future.

“Studying what causes these animals’ mortality is critical in understanding the threats these animals face in their environment,” he said. “The information we gather is essential in helping the populations we see free swimming offshore or in our bays.”

The 20-ton whale will be buried on the beach, near the dunes. In a news release Atlantic Marine Conservation Society’s spokeswoman, Rachel Bosworth said burial on the beach is the most natural way to dispose of the deceased whale. “Animals are buried high on the beach near the base of dunes to mitigate concerns of erosion,” she said, adding that digging up the whale is against federal law.