Scientists baffled as pilot whales form a 'heart' before mass stranding in Australia

The behaviour of a large pod of nearly 100 long-finned pilot whales has baffled scientists. The whales were seen forming a heart shape before tragically stranding themselves on a remote beach in Western Australia (WA).

Drone footage captured this rare phenomenon as the whales tightly grouped together at Cheynes Beach, about 60km east of Albany before the tragic incident unfolded on Tuesday evening.

By the next morning, over 50 of the majestic creatures lay lifeless on the shore, leaving volunteers, government workers, and scientists scrambling to rescue the remaining 46.

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"Unique" images

Reece Whitby, WA's environment minister, shared that researchers across Australia were baffled when they witnessed the unprecedented behaviour of the pod before the stranding. He called the images "unique" and said, "It is pretty incredible from a scientific basis in terms of learning about strandings."

Whitby said that the Department of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions sought advice from other jurisdictions that had experienced similar events, but the consensus was "We have never seen this before."

Rescue efforts

Efforts to save the stranded whales commenced with a rescue operation on Wednesday. Slings were deployed to drag the massive — about 1,000 kg and up to 4 metres long — animals back to the sea.

A massive team of more than 70 volunteers and 90 government agency staff working in shifts supported the whales, many of whom were weak and struggling to stay afloat in shallow water.

However, the attempt to coax some of the pilot whales into deeper waters later in the day was unsuccessful, and they beached themselves once again, reports The Guardian.

The animals were then dragged onto the sand, where they were carefully assessed by veterinarians from Perth Zoo and Albany, with animal welfare rather than rescue becoming the priority. Volunteers tirelessly poured buckets of water over the distressed whales in an attempt to alleviate their suffering.

Why did the whales choose mass stranding?

Murdoch University marine biologist Dr Joshua Smith speculates that since pilot whales share a tight-knit social network, it might explain why they stuck together during the incident.

As the rescue efforts continued, volunteers faced the bitter cold of the ocean, enduring temperatures that made their dedicated work even more remarkable.

Dr Vanessa Pirotta, a wildlife scientist from Macquarie University, speculated that illness or disorientation might be responsible for the unusual incident.

"The fact they were in one area very huddled and doing really interesting behaviours and looking around at times suggests something else is going on that we just don’t know."

However, even as experts investigate the cause of the stranding, the whales' behaviour remains an enigma.

Mass strandings of whales are distressing events that puzzle scientists and spark concern for marine conservation. In previous incidents in Western Australia, more than 130 whales died in a mass stranding in 2018, and the largest such event occurred in 1996 when 320 long-finned pilot whales stranded themselves in Dunsborough.

(With inputs from agencies)

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