How did 4 whales get beached along the East Coast in the same week?
Newsy
Two young humpback whales were beached in Virginia, a minke whale washed ashore in North Carolina and a sperm whale was stranded in Florida.
Four whales were beached along the coasts of three different states in a week, leaving communities along the East Coast full of questions and concern.
The first two whales were spotted on March 3 and March 4 in the Atlantic Ocean, before washing ashore along different parts of Virginia Beach, Virginia.
Experts with the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center said both whales were young humpback males. Necropsies are still underway to determine how the whales died, but both had healed scars from past entanglements, officials said.
Entanglements happen when marine animals get caught in objects like fishing gear, rope and trash, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Not long after the beached humpback whales were spotted in Virginia, just down the shoreline in North Carolina’s Outer Banks a dead minke whale washed up in Corolla.
