Tragic end for stranded pilot whales

Tragically, a total of 55 pilot whales from a pod have perished in a devastating mass stranding on Traigh Mhor beach in the Western Isles of Scotland. The distressing scene was discovered early on Sunday 16 July, and numerous organizations, including the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR), Stornaway Coastguard, Stornoway and Shawbost Fire and Rescue, the Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme (SMASS), the Scottish SPCA, Civil Air Support, and local community members, swiftly arrived at the location to assist.

Regrettably, only 15 of the stranded whales managed to survive. Efforts were made to refloat two of the whales that remained in the water during low tide. Unfortunately, one of the whales became stranded once again and died later on, while the other successfully made it back to deeper waters. Tragically, three more whales perished throughout the day. By mid-afternoon, the decision was made to euthanize the remaining whales, as they had been out of the water for an extended period.

Pilot whales are known to be highly social creatures, and when one member of their pod encounters trouble and becomes stranded, it often leads to the rest of the pod suffering the same fate. It is suspected that the entire pod may have stranded due to one female whale giving birth, as one of the deceased whales showed signs of a vaginal prolapse.

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