Residents fight to save stranded whale

JOHN BISSET/Timaru Herald

STRANDED: Wendy Sullivan of the Department of Conservation and the beached baby minke whale.

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It could have been a scene from Whale Rider, but it happened right here in South Canterbury.

Rangitata Huts residents Jyoti Lewis and Richard Quigley found a baby minke whale stranded about 600m north of the Orari River mouth on Saturday.

Along with other residents they took blankets and buckets to cover the whale and pour water over it until high tide.

Canterbury marine ecologist Laura Allum said unfortunately the whale had to be euthanasied on Saturday evening as it was just a newborn and unable to survive on its own if re-floated out to sea.

She said minke whales were just under 3m long at birth and and this one was only about 3.25m.

While there was an option to dig a channel out to sea, she said it was doubtful that the whale would have had enough energy to hoist itself out.

She contacted whale experts who said for any minke under 4.5m long, the chances of survival were minimal.

"It's like putting a newborn human ba in a park and saying good luck.''

Minke whales are not as common as humpbacks but do come into New Zealand coastal waters. Ms Allum said there had been at least 15 successful minke floatings nationwide. Researchers will now gather statistics for the national stranding data base.

- © Fairfax NZ News