Stranded Whale In East Hampton Died Of Disease: Experts

EAST HAMPTON, NY — A whale found stranded in East Hampton Thursday morning likely died of disease, officials said.

On Friday afternoon, the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society completed the necropsy on the minke whale found in East Hampton Thursday. Initial findings were consistent with diseases found in other minke whales that have stranded under the unusual mortality event, including the minke whale that stranded in Oyster Bay in December, 2018, AMSEAS said.

The whale had an empty stomach, lesions on the heart and lungs consistent with the other cases of disease, and the brain also presented with those disease findings, AMSEAS said. The brain was collected whole to be scanned by the organization's partners at the Mt. Sinai School of Veterinary Medicine; the remains were disposed of at the sanitation facility in East Hampton.

On Thursday, AMSEAS said, a report came in about a live minke whale stranded in Northwest Creek in East Hampton around 8 a.m. The whale was found in about 1.5 to 2 feet of water, officials said.

AMSEAS sent a response team to evaluate the animal, which was reported to be breathing, but not otherwise very active. East Hampton Marine Patrol and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation were on scene to make sure the whale was safe, and to keep people from disturbing the distressed whale, AMSEAS said. When the AMSEAS team arrived, they confirmed the animal had died.

Minke whales are the smallest of the baleen whales, and fairly common in the waters off Long Island. There has been an ongoing unusual mortality event in effect for minke whales along the Atlantic coast since 2017, AMSEAS.

The Atlantic Marine Conservation Society worked with East Hampton Town' marine patrol to relocate the whale up the beach to collect data. The minke whale was a female, 16 feet in length. Barnacles attached to the fluke and its thin body condition are signs the animal may have been in poor health, AMSEAS said. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, NOAA Fisheries, and Suffolk County Parks assisted in the efforts.

Members of the Shinnecock Nation were also onsite to perform a blessing for the whale.

This is the second whale response AMSEAS has responded to in a week, along with two leatherback sea turtles. Last week, a dead, emaciated humpback whale was found in the Southampton surf.

AMSEAS is the lead large whale response organization in New York State and advises anyone who sees an injured, sick, or deceased whale should immediately call the NYS Stranding Hotline at 631-369-9829. Sightings of healthy whales are also beneficial to the organization's work, and can be shared by emailing sightings@amseas.org, AMSEAS said.