Dead Whale Washed Ashore In Long Branch Saturday

LONG BRANCH, NJ — A dead baby humpback whale washed ashore in Long Branch late Saturday afternoon, according to witnesses on the beach.

The whale, which onlookers said was small and looked to be a baby or juvenile, washed ashore at Takanasee Beach in Long Branch.

"A small crowd of onlookers gathered," wrote witness Tony Costa on Facebook. "But police, animal control and beach rescue are on the scene."

There was also a dead whale seen floating in the Atlantic Ocean off Deal this weekend, but it is unknown if the two are the same animal.

A dead humpback whale also washed ashore near Fire Island on Friday, News 12 New Jersey reported.

More than 25 dead whales and dolphins have washed ashore in New Jersey since December 2022. Many of the whales showed evidence of being hit by boats, according to the Marine Mammal Stranding Agency.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) already said said in this statement that New York/New Jersey is seeing an increase in whale deaths since 2015; they call what's happening an "unusual mortality event."

NOAA said they are not sure what is causing the increase in whale deaths off New York/New Jersey. NOAA, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Marine Mammal Commission all said there is no evidence linking offshore wind activity to whale deaths.

Right now, wind turbine companies are doing sonar mapping of the ocean floor off New Jersey. Danish wind energy company Orsted said they will begin construction of their wind turbines this fall, according to the Associated Press. Their turbines will be located between 13 and 15 miles off Atlantic City.

In July, Orsted was given a $1-billion tax break from Gov. Phil Murphy; they said they would be unable to build the wind turbines without the tax break.

“If we don’t figure out a solution, this doesn’t get done in New Jersey,” Murphy said July 6, according to the AP. "Either we get this bill done and the industry thrives here, and the jobs that are associated with it, or it goes somewhere else.”

Atlantic Shores, which wants to build additional wind turbines off Long Beach Island and Atlantic City, is also asking New Jersey for similar tax breaks.

Whale Floating In Raritan Bay Showed Signs Of Boat Strike, Feds Say (June 5)