A humpback whale, which came ashore in the San Francisco Bay Area over the weekend, was apparently killed when it collided with a ship, researchers said Monday.
A necropsy determined that the adult female whale had “injuries consistent with a ship strike,” including extensive bruising to the chest area along with a fractured vertebra, and her skull was dislocated from the spinal column, according to a statement from the Center. of Marine Mammals.
Except for those injuries, the whale was in excellent condition, with ample fat reserves, said the center.
The whale of 49 feet approached came ashore Sunday at Manhattan Beach in Half Moon Bay.
According to the center, this is the fifth whale killed by a ship collision in the East San Francisco Bay Area year. The last kill before that was in May, when an adult female gray whale was found off Fort Funston in San Francisco.
The center said overall seven gray whales and three humpback whales have died in the area this year. In addition to those killed by ship strikes, necropsies found that one died of malnutrition and another from a suspected orca attack, while the causes of death of four other whales were not determined.
Humpback whales visit California to feed in the summer and fall before migrating south to calving and calving grounds off the coast of Mexico.
They are among the most endangered whales in the world with an estimate of 35,000 a 40,000 remaining, including 2, 900 that frequent the coasts of Washington, Oregon and California, the Marine Mammal Center said.
“The main threats facing the ocean it is collisions with ships and entanglement in ocean trash and fishing gear,” the center said.
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