Chile Creates Stranded Whale Workshop

After the beaching of a sperm whale in Chile's Region I (Tarapacá) last week, the National Fisheries Service (SERNAPESCA) and Chile's Whale Conservation Center (CCC) took the initiative to create a stranded-whales workshop.

The workshop aims to improve the technology used to investigate stranded or beached whales and encourage better information exchange between experts nationally and internationally. There is also a desire to establish a local network of people who can respond to whale strandings quickly once they occur.

“We are preparing for a series of regional educational workshops,” said Bárbara Galletti, president of CCC. “They are meant to strengthen awareness about beached whales and other marine mammals in Latin America.”

The sperm whale, found last Monday on the coast 20 km south of the city of Iquique, was buried the following day due to public health concerns. It was with much regret, however, because the quick burial did not give scientists enough time to do any measurements on the whale or to study the cause of death.

SERNAPESCA normally tries to study stranded whales. Tests can show if the whale has been exposed to any kind of contamination or if it has any bruises or lesions on the body that could explain why it was stranded and died.

The incident led CCC to arrange the first workshop together with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (ONAA) of the Unites States, SERNAPESCA and Chile's Universidad Mayor.

“The stranding in Antofagasta proves that, despite an increasing awareness of these events, we need to make a better effort throughout the country,” said Galletti. “The goal is to achieve better information about the biology of marine species and their state of conservation and to analyze their immediate threats.”

There are several reasons why whales strand, and the stranding of a single whale is likely to be natural. If the whale dies close to a shore, its body can strand on the beach before it decomposes.

A stranded whale quickly becomes a health concern and must be removed within a short time. The thick layer of blubber on its body keeps the inner tissues warm, serving as a paradise for bacteria.