Look but don’t touch: Dead whale on Oregon coast will be left to decompose

he fin whale found on the Oregon coast near Astoria on Monday will remain on the shore to decompose into the ocean.

Researchers released the gas built up from decomposition in the fin whale on Tuesday, removing the risk that it will explode and injure beachgoers, according to Seaside Aquarium staff. The whale was left to decompose because of its benefit to the environment.

“It may sound strange but it is a great nutrient boost,” said Seaside Aquarium spokesperson Tiffany Boothe. “It provides a lot of food for eagles and other scavengers.”

Boothe said it’s a good opportunity for people to see a large whale up close, but warned that they can carry diseases that can be transferred to humans, dogs and other animals. Anyone looking at the fin whale should avoid touching it.

The 46-foot-whale washed ashore Monday morning on Sunset Beach State Park. The carcass was being pushed around by the waves, making people believe that it was still alive at the time, Boothe said. Bystanders noticed the whale was caught in a net and they tried to free the ocean mammal, Boothe said. Experts advise against that, though.

“While it may have seemed like a good idea at the time, this compromised the stranding and entanglement investigation,” Boothe said.

Anyone who spots a stranded whale should report it to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and stay away from the carcass. Touching the animal or anything attached to it will make it more difficult for researchers to find out what happened, Boothe said.

Scientists from Portland State University, the Cascadia Research Collective and Seaside Aquarium staff performed a necropsy to determine the whale’s cause of death Tuesday. The final results could take several weeks to process, but researchers found fresh wounds from orcas, Boothe said. The whale was also severely underweight.

This is the first fin whale to be stranded on the Oregon coast in at least 10 years, according to Michael Milstein, a spokesperson from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Last year, three fin whales were found dead on the West Coast, Milstein said.

In January last year, four dead whales washed up on Oregon beaches, including one sperm whale and three gray whales. Experts said it was consistent with a larger trend in declining gray whale populations on the West Coast and Alaska.