#Repost @savethereef @download.ins --- ⚠️TERRIBLY SAD BREAKING NEWS⚠️ 380 long-finned pilot whales just died in what’s now become Australia’s worst mass stranding on record. It all started on Monday when 270 whales became stuck on sandbars in Macquarie Harbor, near the town of Strahan, on Tasmania’s rugged and sparsely populated west coast. Unfortunately, around 90 of the whales had already died by the time they were spotted by authorities, but a rescue mission was quickly launched on Tuesday to try and save the survivors. Rescue teams worked hard to re-float the whales and direct them back to deeper water, with around 30 whales released back out to sea by the end of Tuesday. However, Wednesday brought new horrors with an aerial survey of the area revealing a second group of ~200 long-finned pilot whales had stranded about 10km away in the same harbor. Sadly all 200 whales had perished. These whales were believed to be part of the same mass stranding event near Strahan. As of Wednesday, rescuers have re-floated around 70 whales, with a further 20 of those remaining deemed viable for release. Those who are still alive but are too weak to make it back out to sea will have to be euthanized, and the mammoth task of disposing of 380 two-tonne dead whales will begin. While some may be tempted to blame human activity, it’s thought this mass stranding had natural causes. Pilot whales are a deep-diving species with incredibly strong social bonds. It’s possible one leading individual could have mistakenly led the whole group to shore and then fallen victim to the area’s gently sloping beaches. Tasmania’s previous biggest stranding was in 1935 with 294 pilot whales. Please share this sad news with your followers and tag people who need to see it as we MUST learn to appreciate and respect our wildlife MUCH MORE before we lose anymore animals! Caption by @inherentlywild #savethewhales #marinelifematters #karmagawa #savethereef (at Strahan, Tasmania) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFjWRanJNrs/?igshid=1or6fgyofv6pu
