Four pilot whales died when a pod of up to 40 whales were stranded on a beach in New Zealand’s North Island on Sunday (November 24).
Hundreds of locals, as well as members from conservation group Project Jonah, helped refloat and redirect most of the pod back out to sea but three adults and a calf died, New Zealand’s Department of Conservation (DOC) said.
New Zealand and neighbouring Australia are hot spots for mass whale strandings, due to large colonies of pilot whales living in the deep oceans surrounding both island nations.
Mass whale strandings have occurred throughout recorded modern history, and why it happens is a question that has puzzled marine biologists for years.
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