Massive fin whale, a vulnerable species, beaches itself in northern France
- Animal experts are preparing to carry out an autopsy
- The mammal is the second biggest in the world after blue whale
French animal experts are preparing to conduct an autopsy on a 19-metre-long whale that died after getting stranded at the northern port of Calais.
The fin whale, weighing around 15 tonnes, apparently beached itself after getting injured, a rare phenomenon in the area.
Fin whales, the second-biggest mammal species in the world after the blue whale, are listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
“It is a female, about 30 years old, who ran aground on Saturday,” said Jacky Karpouzopoulos of the CMNF animal protection group.
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“She was sick but she reached the port of Calais still alive, then she went too close to the rocks and she ran aground.”