Boats must keep 500m from the mammals.

Alarm over spate of whale deaths

08.01.2003 By KATHERINE HOBY The number of Brydes whales found dead in New Zealand waters is disturbing conservationists.

While Department of Conservation staff were burying an almost fully grown 12m male in soft sand north of Long Bay yesterday, another dead whale was sighted floating off Takatu Pt, near the northern end of Kawau Island.

This brings to five the number of whales found dead in the past 18 months. Four were hit and killed by vessels in the Hauraki Gulf. The latest whale has yet to be examined, and it is not certain why it died.

Bill Trusewich, of DoC, said the latest dead whale, which was decomposing, was towed to Tauwharanui Regional Park. It was likely to be buried today.

When DoC staff went to retrieve the body, another Brydes whale was swimming nearby. He said it might be their breeding season, because the creatures were usually solitary.

The other whale found on Monday was interred in a secret location north of Long Bay, where seven or eight other whales were already buried. He said the location had to be kept secret in case bone hunters dug up the bodies.

Examination showed that the whale died almost instantly when a container ship fractured its skull.

There were several reasons the whales might have been hit, Mr Trusewich said.

Whales were sometimes curious about boats, might have been asleep when hit or their sonar systems might have been confused by the noise of engines.

With busy shipping channels around New Zealand, whales were likely to keep getting hit.

'Unfortunately, ways to prevent it are limited.'

Brydes whales generally liked subtropical waters and New Zealand coastal waters were probably the outskirts of their preferred territory.

Mr Trusewich said burying a whale was a moving experience.

'How beautiful it is, how tragic. It tears you up.'

Project Jonah national spokeswoman Trish Steward said whales were curious creatures.

She was concerned at the increased number of boats in the water for the America's Cup. Many people were not aware of the rules governing whales and dolphins.

Boats must keep 500m from the mammals.

There is no law in New Zealand that says vessels must keep 500 metres from

And until there is a law, you can be sure Graeme Buttler will be harassing the whales at whatever distance he prefers. Bu then again, NZ is more interested in their profits from the whale-watching industry than actually protecting the whales so there probably never will be a law regulating this.

Gunnar Davidsson

No no! You'll blow the Greenpeace lies that whales are actually just like humans socially!

Why not let the bone hunters have the bodies?

There are also heaps of them, so it's not a surprise that they get killed more frequently as their population explodes.

Why is it unfortunate? Humans kill lots of animals by accident, why is it special when a whale is involved?

Yeah, it really must rip your heart to pieces. Just like when you accidently step on a bug eh.

And what if the whale keeps coming closer?

But then it would be a very strong armed Norwegian harpooner that would be able to kill a whale from 500 metres so perhaps it should be a law.

It is impossible to not find yourself within 500 metres of Brydes or Minke whales in my local waters. Because they are protected they have no fear of boats and often lie alongside or cruise right below.

It is my strategy to heave to let them call the shots. All whales recently killed locally have been killed by ship strike. Prior to that, before 1964 they were killed by whalers in the tens of thousands.

Oh how reckless the whalers of New Zealand were...

Thank goodness the rest of the whalers that remain today have more sense.