The death of a gentle giant: heartbreaking moment Stranded humpback whale appears to cry as it loses its battle to stay alive on a Brazilian beach
- The mammal appeared on Caipe beach in Sao Francisco do Conde on July 16.
This is the heartbreaking moment a stranded humpback whale appears to cry its last breath after washing up on a beach in Brazil.
The magnificent marine mammal washed up on Caipe Beach in Sao Francisco do Conde on July 16.
Pictures taken by stunned onlookers show tears seemingly running down the gentle giant’s face as he knows he is close to death.
Tragically, marine experts reported on July 17 that the trapped whale had died, despite desperate attempts to save it.
The animals can only survive a few hours out of water, and the stranded whale was seen blinking continuously as it met a devastating end.
The stranded humpback blinks continuously as she meets a tragic end. The animals can only survive a few hours out of water.
The veterinarian and coordinator of the Baleia Jubarte Project, Gustavo Rodamilans, told local media: “We tried to tow the animal three times.”
He added: “We had all the appropriate equipment, a well-trained team, but the whale managed to free itself from the rope and did not allow itself to be towed away.”
The humpback whale first appeared on Mare Island in All Saints’ Bay on July 8.
After being returned to the water, it ran aground on Caipe beach again on 15 July.
It was returned to sea a second time with the help of volunteers and a tugboat, only to reappear at a nearby location the next morning.
Gustavo told local media at the time: ‘We noticed that his fin has a dislocation or fracture, but we can only confirm it with an X-ray.
Footage taken by stunned onlookers shows tears seemingly streaming down the stranded humpback’s face as if she knew she was close to death.
“However, it is not possible to treat a dislocation or fracture in a whale, and that makes survival of the animal impossible.”
The Humpback Whale Project team had told local media it was considering euthanizing the animal, but it’s unclear how it came to an end.
Scientists have officially rejected the claim that the whale had been crying.
They say that the reason for the tears was a release of oil to lubricate the whale’s eyes while it was out of the water.
Biologist Victor Bandeira explained: ‘There is a gland in the eyelid that produces oil to lubricate the eye and prevent dryness.
“Since the whale is on land, exposed to the wind, its eyes dry out, so it produces this oil to protect the eyeball.”
While whales don’t cry in the sense that humans would, witnesses to whale strandings around the world have reported the sheer emotion of the animals as they wash up on the beach.
Liz Carlson, who witnessed a mass stranding of pilot whales in New Zealand in 2018, said: “They had tears in their eyes… It looked like they were crying and making sad sounds.”
She told the BBC it had been “the worst night of my life” adding: “You can feel the fear in the animals, they are watching you.” They watch you and have very human eyes.
In the UK this weekend over 50 pilot whales washed up on a beach in the Outer Hebrides.
Thousands of whales and dolphins wash up on the beach each year for a variety of reasons.
I am Rakesh Sharma, I associated with Elite News as an Editor, since 2021. I take care of all the news operations like content, budget, hiring and policy making.