Almost all of the 400 whales that beached themselves in New Zealand die
Wellington — More than 400 whales were stranded on a New Zealand beach on Friday, with most of them dying quickly as frustrated volunteers desperately raced to save the survivors. It was one of the largest mass beachings recorded in New Zealand, where strandings are relatively common, the department of conservation said. Andrew Lamason, the department’s regional manager, said 416 pilot whales swam ashore at Farewell Spit in the Golden Bay region, on the northern tip of South Island. About 70% had perished by the time wildlife officers reached the remote location and about 500 volunteers pitched in to get the remaining whales offshore. However, he conceded the outlook was gloomy and by late afternoon the majority of the 100-plus whales that were refloated at high tide had swam back ashore. "With that number dead, you have to assume that the rest are in reasonably poor nick as well," he told Radio New Zealand. "So we’re sort of preparing ourselves for a pretty traumatic period ahead."...
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