BANGKOK, May 29 (TNA) – Necropsy results revealed that a rare Bryde’s whale might get caught in a seine and was dragged and hit by a hard object.
Department of Marine and Coastal Resources chief Jatuporn Burutpat said about the autopsy results of the Bryde’s whale, found floating dead in the Gulf of Thailand in Phetchaburi province.
He said cross marks, likely caused by fishing net, appeared on the carcass. The post-mortem found muscle bleeding, blood clots in the lungs and wounds.
The results showed that the whale might get caught in the fishing and was dragged and hit with a blunt object.
Jatuporn said the whale identity matched the record of two-year-old female Bryda’s whale, named Pin, which was one of 40 whales, surveyed in 2017 and given a code.
After the post-mortem, the carcass will be buried for one year and after that its bones will be kept at the department’s museum.
Among 100 Bryda’s whales found in Thailand, about half live in the upper part of the Gulf of Thailand.
The department will find measures to protect whales from fishing gears and it has also instructed whale watching tour operators to keep a safe distance from whales.
Bryda’s whale is one of four marine animals, added to Thailand’s list of reserved wild animals in yesterday’s announcement of the new Wild Animal Reservation and Protection Act.
Three others are Omura’s whale, whale sharks and leather back turtles. (TNA)
