Beaked whale washes up on PEI’s north shore
A recently dead adult male whale that was found on the north shore of Prince Edward Island in early June was identified as a Sowerby’s beaked whale (Mesoplodon bidens). It is very rare to find stranded or beached beaked whales of any species as they tend to live in deep offshore waters and they are thought to be few in number. This particular species, Sowerby’s, has one of the most northerly distributions among beaked whales. It is also one of the most common beaked whales to strand. However, this is only the second record of stranding of an individual of this species on Canadian Maritime shores, although a number of strandings have been recorded in Newfoundland and Labrador and also in Massachusetts.
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- Adult male Sowerby’s beaked whale, 475m long.
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- This species carries well its name of ‘beaked’ whale
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- Beaked whales typically have only one or two pairs of teeth, and only in their lower jaw. These teeth can be at the tip of the jaw or further back, as in this case. The worn appearance of this whale’s teeth (down to the gums) suggested an older animal.
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[…] was found stranded last June in the St. Lawrence Gulf on the north shore of Prince Edward Island (see previous article from July 24, 2013). This double occurrence of a rare event could suggest a change in the geographical distribution of […]