Huge blue whale washes up on Chile beach after dying at sea
A huge blue whale has mysteriously washed up on a beach in southern Chile, sparking rumours it may have collided with a boat.
The 10-metre long whale was discovered in the town of Puerto Elvira, in the city of Ancud, on Saturday afternoon (August 5).
Local experts rushed to the scene and confirmed that it was a “large cetacean of the Balaenopteridae family”.
According to the Cetacean Conservation Center (CCC) of Chile, the Balaenopteridae family is the most diverse of whales, and includes six types of species of different sizes, from the Minke, about nine metres long, to the gigantic Blue whale, which can reach 30 metres, and is considered the largest animal on the planet.
The beach where the whale was found is a popular aquaculture spot, where fish are bred, reared and harvested.
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The National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (Sernapesca) visited the beach in the town of Puerto Elvira after hearing of the whale.
They confirmed that it was “a large cetacean of the Balaenopteridae family” in a statement on Twitter.
The statement read: “#LosLagos: a large cetacean of the Balaenopteridae family, stranded dead in Puerto Elvira, Ancud.
“We assisted in identifying the species and it would be, preliminarily, a blue whale. The change of tide prevented the taking of samples, so we will continue monitoring.”
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Cristian Hudson, regional director of Sernapesca in Los Lagos, said he believed the animal died prior to being washed up.
He said: “Due to the conditions in which it was found, it would have died some time ago at sea and would have been stranded in that condition.”
It remains unclear how the whale died but environmental groups warned that the place is an area of high maritime traffic of vessels from the aquaculture industry.
They asked the authorities to investigate a possible collision of the whale with one of these vessels.
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