Melon-headed whales strand on Tybee and Sea islands, a first for Georgia

TYBEE ISLAND, Ga. (WSAV) — Two melon-headed whales stranded in December, one on Tybee Island and the other on Sea Island, marking the first documented strandings on Georgia’s coast.

The Georgia Marine Mammal Stranding Network, which the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) coordinates, said that the first whale was reported on Tybee Island on Dec. 26 by Tybee Island Public Works.

The whale was initially identified as a pygmy killer whale but was later updated to a melon-headed whale based on the head and flipper shape.

It was thin and a site necropsy found that its stomachs were empty, a DNR official said.

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Carcass of melon-headed whale stranded on Tybee Island. Credit to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources

The second whale was found by the public on Dec. 28 on Sea Island. This whale was also thin, and its stomachs were empty.

The Sea Island whale’s carcass showed signs of “extensive shark scavenging” and was decomposed, a DNR official said.

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Carcass of melon-headed whale stranded on Sea Island. Credit to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources

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