A National Park Services volunteer looks over a dead pilot whale as it lies on the beach in the Florida Everglades
More than 90 whales have become stranded on Florida beaches in the past two months, almost three times the average, baffling marine biologists and making them wonder if a deadly common denominator is at play.
The series of cold fronts that marched across Florida in the past month could be a factor. "Any kind of front or a hurricane disorients the animals, and they come in," said Erin Fougeres, a marine mammal biologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries.
Another theory: The whales might have contracted morbillivirus, an ailment similar to canine distemper that has been attacking dolphins along the East Cost this year. But necropsies failed to confirm this.
Navy sonar, which can cause whales to aim toward shore, has been ruled out, because the Navy wasn't conducting any sonar exercises when the whales stranded, Fougeres said.
Or, the whales could be following a sick leader who was heading toward shallow waters to make breathing easier, said Denise Boyd, a research biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Nothing so far is conclusive, Fougeres said, and "there are cases where we just never know the cause."
On average, about 200 whales each year land on Florida's shores. About one "mass stranding," involving several whales, occurs every three years in this state, authorities said.
Yet in just the past two months, a total of 93 whales came ashore in Florida and most of those, 91, were involved in two mass strandings.
On Dec. 4, 43 pilot whales got caught in the shallows of Everglades National Park on the state's southwest coast, and nine died. Four days later, 11 pilot whales, part of the same pod, beached at Snipe Point near Key West, and all died.
Twelve pilot whales on Jan. 19-22 beached themselves between Naples and Fort Myers, and eight died or were euthanized. On Jan. 23, 25 more whales, most believed to be part of the same pod, were found dead on Kice Island, south of Marco Island.
"Mass strandings aren't necessarily rare, but to have two so close together is," Fougeres said.
At the same time, on Jan. 2, a dead sperm whale was found floating near Key Largo. And on Jan. 10, a sperm whale weighing up to 15 tons was found dead at Spanish River Park in Boca Raton, authorities said.
Florida sees more stranded whales than another state, followed by California. Beachings also have been reported in large numbers along the northern Gulf Coast. Prior to the latest episodes, the most recent strandings in Florida were in 2012 in Fort Pierce, 2011 on Cudjoe Key and in 2003 on Big Pine Key.
Pilot and sperm whales are commonly found 1,000 to 2,000 feet down in the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, feasting on squid, octopus, crab, shrimp and other fish.
Pilot whales typically reach a length of 18 to 20 feet, weigh up to two tons and normally inhabit tropical and temperate waters.
Sperm whales are considerably larger, up to 60 feet and 40 tons, or roughly the size of a school bus. While females remain in tropical or subtropical waters year-round, males migrate north to find cooler waters but return south to breed.
Other kinds of whales that can be found near Florida include pigmy sperm whales, humpback whales, North Atlantic right whales, Bryde's whales and gervais beaked whales.
Government biologists say one problem they face during rescue tries is overzealous bystanders, who attempt to push the large marine mammals back into the sea.
"We always ask people not to push the animals back out, because they generally strand for a reason," Boyd said. "These people are well-intentioned, but that can do more harm than good."
If you see a stranded whale or dolphin, call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's hotline; in Broward and Palm Beach counties, call 561-357-4200 and press 7, in Miami-Dade and Monroe counties call 305-470-6863, and press 7.
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