One of world’s rarest and most elusive whales has been found stranded on a British beach.
The pygmy sperm whale was discovered on rocks.
The species is rarely seen alive and only a handful have ever washed up in Britain.
The 11-foot-long sea mammal was found dead at Bigbury-on-Sea, near Plymouth, Devon, on Monday (1 Sept).
It weighed around 1,500Ib lb or 110 stones.
Tom Miller, British Divers Marine Life Rescue mammal medic, said a local farmer helped lift the animal from the rocks with a tractor.
It was taken to a secure location where it was collected by staff from the Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme.
“Once I arrived at the scene, it became apparent that it was indeed a very rare pygmy sperm whale, ” Mr Miller told Need To Know.
“Only a handful have been recorded within the UK over the past 25 years, and globally, little is known about this species due to its reclusive nature.
“I liaised with colleagues at the Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme, who advised they would very much like to retrieve the whale and take it back for a post-mortem to obtain valuable scientific data.
“I managed to obtain assistance from Callum and the team at Mount Folly Farm, Bigbury.
“This was despite them being incredibly busy trying to repair damage caused by the flash floods a few days prior.
“After waiting until low tide, a rope was attached to the whale, and it was extracted from the rocks.
“It was then placed into a telehandler bucket and removed to a secure location awaiting collection from the CSIP team.”
Pygmy sperm whales are much smaller than true sperm whales, only reaching a maximum size of around 13 feet.
They have only been recognised as a species since 1966.
Very little is known about them, but it is thought that they eat a variety of fish, octopus, crab and shrimp.
They are usually found in warm, deep water, but have been spotted in all temperate, subtropical and tropical seas.
Devon Wildlife Trust’s Coral Smith said: “This is a very rare stranding indeed, with only a handful occurring in UK waters since CSIP began recording.
“Although incredibly sad to see such a magnificent and rare mammal, this incident highlighted the brilliant partnership working between BDMLR and Devon Wildlife Trust volunteers.
“It shows the huge value that local people in local communities can play in marine citizen science and conservation.”
The dead dolphin found on the rocks on the beach. (Jam Press/Tom Miller)
Local farmer helped lift the dead dolphin from the rocks with a tractor. (Jam Press/Tom Miller)
Dead dolphin was found on the rocks on the beach. (Jam Press/Tom Miller)
