UPSC Articles
Hundreds of long-finned pilot whales die
Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Conservation
In news
- Over 450 long-finned pilot whales have died in Australia’s largest recorded mass-stranding event.
- The whales were beached at a remote beach in Tasmania’s west coast.
Important value additions
Beaching
- It refers to the phenomenon of dolphins and whales stranding themselves on beaches.
- There are around 2,000 strandings each year worldwide, with most resulting in the death of the animal.
- Whales strand themselves on beaches either singularly or in groups.
- While individual strandings are mostly attributed to injury or sickness, it is not clear why exactly whales beach themselves in groups.
Long-finned pilot whales
- Scientific Name: Globicephala melas
- These are one of two species of pilot whale, along with short-finned pilot whales.
- These prefer deep temperate to subpolar oceanic waters.
- They have been known to occur in coastal waters in some areas.
- They have been documented near the Antarctic sea ice and associated with the colder Benguela and Humboldt Currents, which may extend their normal range.
- Protection Status: (1) CITES: Appendix II; (2) IUCN: Least Concern
