Humpback Whale Washes Ashore at Robert Moses Friday Morning
A humpback whale washed up onto the beach at Robert Moses State Park on Friday morning, according to officials from the New York State Parks Department and Atlantic Marine Conservation Society.
The parks department contacted National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to investigate, and a team from the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society is expected to perform a necropsy on the whale this afternoon. The whale was found deceased and washed up on the shore at Field 5 of the beach.
“We’re going into the time of year where these animals tend to wash up,” Robert DiGiovanni, founder and chief scientist of Atlantic Marine Conservation Society, told the Press.
DiGiovanni noted that this whale represents just one washed-up whale in an “unusual mortality event” that has been ongoing for about six years. This year alone the organization has responded to nine washed-up sea animals: four humpback whales in New Jersey, three humpbacks in New York, and two minke whales in New York.
“We’ve been seeing a higher frequency,” he said. “These animals, the humpback whales, many of them are coming back with evidence of entanglements and vessel strikes.”
DiGiovanni said the increase is still being investigated. He encourages the public to report any sighting of sea life, either dead or alive and swimming in the ocean, to the organization so that they can learn more about sea life in the area.
More information about the whale at Robert Moses will be available later this afternoon.
