Coastguards in northern Egypt have discovered the dead body of a six-ton, 17-meter-long (56-feet) white whale, Egypt's official news agency MENA reported on Tuesday.

The rotten carcass of the rare albino whale was discovered lying on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, in the Kafr el-Sheikh Governorate. It is believed to have died of a stomach wound at sea.

Local doctors and members of environmental organizations rushed to the scene. They plan to examine the creature before its remains are disposed of.

Albino whales are extremely rare in the Mediterranean Sea. They are more commonly found in oceans.