Before she knew what was happening, a large female killer whale lifted Bloom’s paddleboard up out of the water. “And at that moment it was like terror,” Bloom said.
Alaska wildlife officials collaborated with whale experts to successfully rescue a humpback whale that was entangled in crabbing gear off the coast of Gustavus, Alaska, preventing it from dying.
A dead humpback whale calf named Tango was found washed up near Juneau, Alaska, and an investigation is underway to determine if it was struck by a vessel.
The humpback whale was first reported dead or stranded on Killisnoo Island on Feb. 10th, by Alaska Marine Highway System personnel, said Sadie Wright, a large whale entanglement response coordinator with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s fisheries division. The animal with a long history in the area has been necropsied.
The Coast Guard reported the dead 47-foot female humpback to NOAA on Sunday evening. It had washed ashore on the south end of Kruzof Island. The whale looked healthy and its belly was full of fish — most likely herring. But they did find some evidence of blunt trauma.
“For the killer whales, I honestly don’t know if this is normal or not,” said Mandy Keogh, the Regional Marine Mammal Stranding Coordinator for NOAA Fisheries in Alaska. Dead killer whales simply aren’t seen that often.
It is thought to be either an aborted fetus or a very young calf. The calf is one of six belugas that have been found dead this year, five in the last month.
An alarming number of gray whales have been found dead this year from Mexico to Alaska, triggering a federal investigation into what’s causing the die-off.
The species has been spotted in the Inside Passage before. But sightings are infrequent. A whale found recently near Juneau is thought to have died from a vessel strike.
Why did the sea lion cross the road? Scientists don't know yet.
Biologists are investigating a surprising connection between two animals that aren’t exactly well loved in parts of Southeast. Gustavus locals suspect wolves are picking off deer at a popular hunting spot on an island near the mainland.
California sea lions are rare but occasionally show up in Southeast Alaska and have been documented in other parts of Alaska as well.
Douglas Indian Association catalogs marine debris at the bottom of Gastineau Channel | Though it sounds like the subtitle to a Pirates of the Caribbean movie, ghost fishing is a real phenomenon. It's going on right now in Gastineau Channel.
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