A small minke whale was found stranded in Northwest Creek in East Hampton Thursday morning and died later, just as rescuers arrived to help it.
The Atlantic Marine Conservation Society received a report of a live minke whale beached on the shores of Northwest Creek around 8 a.m.
The female whale was about 16 feet long and in about one and a half to two feet of water.
A response team evaluated the animal, which was breathing but not very active. Meanwhile, the East Hampton Town Marine Patrol and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation made sure the whale was safe and that no one got near it to distress it. When the team arrived, they confirmed the whale had died.
The conservation society will perform a necropsy on Friday and will share additional information, including the length, sex, approximate age, and any significant findings, once they are available. When heavy equipment is available, the animal will be transferred to the East Hampton sanitation facility for the necropsy.
"Minke whales are the smallest of the baleen whales, and fairly common in the waters off Long Island," the conservation society said in a statement. There has been an ongoing unusual mortality event in effect for minke whales along the Atlantic Coast since 2017.
It is unusual for a whale of any kind to travel into the creek. "Healthy animals typically don’t get into those types of the areas. The necropsy will reveal more, but it could be related to illness or injury," according to Rachel Bosworth, a spokeswoman for the conservation society.
There were barnacles attached to the fluke and its thin body condition are signs the animal may have been in poor health, the conservation society later said.
A member of the Shinnecock Nation performed a blessing for the whale.
This is the second whale response AMSEAS has responded to in a week, along with two leatherback sea turtles. It is important to report all strandings of marine mammals and sea turtles to the NYS Stranding Hotline at 631.369.9829. Sightings of healthy animals are critical as well and can be shared by emailing [email protected].
The conservation society, the lead large whale response organization in New York State, was on the South Fork last week, as well, when a dead humpback whale washed ashore in Southampton Village last Thursday.
As a reminder, if you see a marine animal in distress, contact the New York State Stranding Hotline at 631-369-9829.
Doug Kuntz
This article has been updated since it was first published.
