Whale carcass lifted from Hong Kong waters buried for future research purposes
Hong Kong Free Press
Experts have completed a necropsy on the whale carcass found in Sai Kung waters, parts of which were buried near High Island Reservoir West Dam on Monday.
The Bryde’s whale was first seen in the waters near Sai Kung in mid-July and attracted many people to take boat rides approaching it. On July 31, the whale carcass was spotted to the south of Shelter Island.
The marine mammal was then transported to the west dam of High Island Reservoir and veterinarians and experts from Ocean Park and the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation started a necropsy.
According to Sunday’s press release, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) said that the experts had worked with them and completed the necropsy over the past few days.
Buried on the spot
The AFCD said it would bury the whale carcass after dissection on Monday near High Island Reservoir West Dam for further research purposes in the future. The department said it had consulted the experts and taken reference of different ways to handle whale carcasses.
“When AFCD staff bury the whale carcass, proper procedure will be taken to ensure the whole process is in line with hygiene and disinfection requirements as well as environment protection principles,” an AFCD spokesperson said.
After it had naturally decayed, the department said the whale carcass would be sent to Ocean Park Hong Kong for research purposes.
The department urged the public not to approach and watch the burial in case of any danger, as it used “machines and chemicals” to handle the carcass.
Several wounds
Experts from Ocean Park and the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation performed an initial check of the whale carcass after it was lifted from the water on July 31.
“Apart from two old wounds on the back, there was a very obvious new wound on the dorsal fin of the whale. The old wounds were on the farther part of the whale’s back, while the new wound was at the centre of the back,” the foundation’s Scientific Officer Compass Chan said in Cantonese during a media briefing on July 31.
The new wound found on the whale had potentially been caused by hard objects, Philip Wong, General Curator, Zoological Operations & Conservation of Ocean Park, said in Cantonese on August 1, adding that it was likely that the injury was caused by the vessels.
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