Posted 11/29/2010
A false killer whale that stranded on Moloka’i and later died has been confirmed as belonging to the insular population of these animals, which were proposed for listing as endangered just days ago. The total number of individuals in this population is estimated at somewhere between 150 to 170. The stranding occurred Saturday, November 27.
According to Robin Baird of the Cascadia Research Collective, photos taken of the stranded animal were used to identify it as part of the insular population, the subject of the November cover story in Environment Hawai`i. It was first photographed off the Big Island in December 2004, off O`ahu in April 2008, and off the Big Island in September 2008. A necropsy to determine the cause of death is to be done by Hawai`i Pacific University’s marine mammal stranding response team. There was no obvious injury.
On November 17, the National Marine Fisheries Service proposed to list the insular population of false killer whales as endangered; additional information may be found on the Cascadia Research Collective website:
Leave a Reply