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Ministry of Conservation of New Zealand
A group of nearly 145 dead pilot whales died after being stranded on a beach on Stewart Island, New Zealand.
The animals were discovered by strollers late Saturday, scattered along Mason Bay Beach.
The authorities said that half of the whales were already dead at that time, while the other half had been shot down because it would have been too difficult to save them.
In two separate incidents, 10 dwarf whales and one sperm whale also failed in New Zealand over the weekend.
"A heartbreaking decision"
Both groups of pilot whales stranded about 2 km from each other on a Rakiura or Steward Island beach off the coast of the South Island. .
They were first spotted by a camper trekking in the remote area.
"Unfortunately, the chances of re-circulating the remaining whales are extremely low," said Ren Leppens of the Regional Department of Conservation (DOC) in a statement.
"The remoteness, the lack of nearby staff and the deterioration of the whales' condition meant that the most humane thing to do was to euthanize."
"However, it's still a heartbreaking decision to make."
The DOC said in a statement that strandings of whales are not uncommon in New Zealand and that there are about 85 incidents a year. However, in most cases it is a single stranded animal, not an entire pod.
It is unclear why whales and dolphins fail, the agency said. Possible reasons could be illness, navigation errors, low tide or being chased by a predator.
Also over the weekend, 10 poppy whales stranded at the northern tip of the North Island, two of which died, while it is hoped that the remaining eight will still be saved and bailed out .
A 15-meter sperm whale died Saturday morning on another beach on the North Island.
