Members of the WDCS team were called to investigate initial reports on Sunday 2nd August of an adult Northern Bottlenose whale thought to be trapped in Cromarty Harbour. On arrival, Charlie Phillips, WDCS Field Officer and British Divers Marine Life Rescue trained medic was informed that the whale, possibly an adult about 25 feet long, had headed back out to the open sea. However, local Coastguard were later told by members of the public that two more (smaller) animals had been sighted in very shallow water about a mile further along the coast.
The WDCS team then proceeded in the general direction of the sightings and discovered two juvenile Northern Bottlenose whales (approx 18 feet in length) in very shallow water with the tide falling. Shortly after Coastguard officials, members of the local police, the Scottish Agricultural Collage, British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR), and Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) were also in attendance on the scene.
Northern bottlenose whales, which belong to the beaked whale family, live in very deep water to the north and west of Scotland, and are rarely encountered in the relatively shallow waters of the Moray Firth. Large, deep diving beaked and sperm whales have a very low chance of survival once they have stranded. Lethal internal damage occurs rapidly due to the pressures and stress placed on their bodies in such a situation. Attempts to free the animals will often only prolong death and cause unnecessary pain.
Both animals were injected with anesthetic but, as the tide began to rise again, one of the whales made it off the beach and was in shallow water when light began to fail at around 10.30pm. The remaining animal has since died and will undergo a post mortem in order to understand what might have caused the whale to strand.
Sky Search has since conducted an aerial survey to look for the second whale along the coastline of the Moray Firth, but without luck. WDCS would like to thank local BDMLR coordinators and medics dealing with this event, Sky Search, and everyone who was involved in this stranding effort.
All strandings should be reported immediately. Please report live strandings to BDMLR on 01825 765 564 and strandings of dead animals in Scotland should be reported to 01463 243 030.