The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is looking for answers now that 30 dead whales have recently surfaced on Alaska's coasts.
In a news release Thursday, the NOAA called the matter an "unusual mortality event" and indicated it would open an investigation to uncover the cause. The NOAA reserves such classifications for surprising or notable die-offs involving marine animals.
"NOAA Fisheries scientists and partners are very concerned about the large number of whales stranding in the western Gulf of Alaska in recent months," Dr. Teri Rowles, NOAA Fisheries' marine mammal health and stranding response coordinator, said in the release. "While we do not yet know the cause of these strandings, our investigations will give us important information on the health of whales and the ecosystems where they live. Members of the public can greatly assist the investigation by immediately reporting any sightings of dead whales or distressed live animals they discover."
In June, researchers at the University of Alaska - Fairbanks detailed the mysterious deaths of nine fin whales.
"It is really perplexing for a number of reasons," Kate Wynne, a professor at UAF and an Alaska Sea Grant marine mammal specialist, said in a press release. "They appear to have all died around the same time. And the strange thing is they are all one species, with the exception of one dead humpback whale found in a different location."
The 30 whale deaths go back to May, The Guardian reported, totaling 14 humpback whales, 11 fin whales, one gray whale and four with an unidentified species.
Speaking with Alaska Public Radio, Rowles said investigating such an event with biotoxin tests that have been inconclusive thus far presents a steep challenge.
Said Rowles, "Trying to investigate large whale mortality events provides a lot of logistical complications and getting access to good samples, getting access safely to carcasses, and even finding a place for carcasses to be towed and examined."
