Fin whale dies on Cornish beach after rescuers battle in vain to save it

Fin whale dies on Cornish beach after rescuers battle in vain to save the 60ft mammal which was ‘really thin’

  • Whale was discovered by beach clean volunteers in Nare Point, Lizard Peninsula
  •  Fin whale sadly died at 3.45pm this afternoon after valiant effort to save its life
  • Experts said it appeared the whale was unwell and hadn’t ‘eaten for some time’

A 60-foot-long whale has died on a beach in Cornwall after rescuers battled in vain to save the ‘really thin’ mammal.

The fin whale was discovered by volunteers carrying out a beach clean at Nare Point on the Lizard Peninsula today following the recent storms.  

But the whale – which had multiple wounds across its body – was sadly pronounced dead at 3.45pm this afternoon.

Video from the scene captures the stranded whale as it desperately moves from side to side while beached on rocks just feet from the sea.

The fin whale (pictured) was discovered by volunteers carrying out a beach clean at Nare Point on the Lizard Peninsula today following the recent storms

Rescuers throw bags filled with seawater across the fin whale – also known as a herring whale or razorback whale – as they attempt to save the mammal.

The British Divers Marine Life Rescue, BDMLR, had warned that the mammal was unlikely to survive its stranding when they arrived at the scene this afternoon.

Experts had also advised members of the public not to attempt to return the mammal to the sea by themselves.

Julia Cable, national coordinator at BDMLR, told CornwallLive it appeared the whale was unwell or hadn’t ‘eaten for some time’ – but tests would need to be undertaken to determine the cause of death.

She said: ‘We don’t get them in our waters. I can’t remember the last time one was recorded down here.

‘It is really really thin so it’s likely it hasn’t eaten for some time.’

Fin whales – which are the second largest whale on the planet – are typically found in the Gulf of California, the Coral Triangle or the Arctic. 

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