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Two whales beach themselves off Florida coast; Navy investigating whether training a factor

By Associated Press, 6/18/2001 23:33

VERO BEACH, Fla. (AP) The U.S. Navy is investigating whether its training activities off the Florida Coast may have led to the deaths of two rare whales, Navy officials said Monday.

Both beaked whales an adult female and a younger male beached themselves and died Sunday.

The adult female, which was 14 feet long and about 2,000 pounds, was already dead when marine rescue officials arrived. The male 10 feet long and 1,500 pounds was found alive but was euthanized because it was so ill.

The cause of their deaths was not immediately determined.

U.S. Navy officials said they are investigating to see if recent training activities off the Florida coast may have led to the deaths.

''We are aware of the beachings and taking a good hard look at what, if any, training exercises we may have had in the area, and whether these may have caused these beachings,'' said Lt. Commander John Kirby, a spokesman with the Navy's second fleet.

Both whales were malnourished, said Gregory Bossart, director of marine mammal research and conservation at the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution in Fort Pierce. He said the younger whale showed signs of kidney and liver trauma.

Bossart said the deaths may be linked to Navy tests of sonar equipment conducted off the Florida coast last week. The National Marine Fisheries Service has asked officials to be on the lookout for an increase in strandings.

Last year, dozens of beaked whales were stranded in the Bahamas after similar tests were conducted by the Navy near there.

Sonar would not have immediately killed the whales, but would have rendered them incapable of eating, Bossart said.

Kirby did not disclose what kind of exercises the Navy had been conducting.

A National Marine Fisheries Service biologist said Monday his agency issued the Navy a permit to carry out tests with high explosives off the coast near Jacksonville this summer.

''The Navy requested permission to do something known as 'ship shock testing' of a new guided missile destroyer, the U.S.S. Winston Churchill,'' biologist Eric Hawk said.

Under the permit, the Navy is required to move its tests elsewhere if endangered sealife is spotted nearby. Hawk said the Navy was forced to move several times during its recent tests.

The heads of the whales were sent to Harvard University for further testing. Results should be available in two to three weeks, Bossart said.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001