40-foot whale carcass examined at Port Hueneme in Ventura County
Scientists were performing a necropsy Thursday on the carcass of a 40-foot whale that floated into Port Hueneme this week after possibly being struck by a ship.
The whale, which appeared to have been dead for a while, was discovered Tuesday near a military ship at Naval Base Ventura County, said base spokeswoman Kimberly Gearhart.
“It doesn’t happen every day,†she said. “It’s a ‘smell it before you see it’ sort of thing.â€
Soon after authorities spotted the whale, scientists with the National Marine Fisheries Service were called in to inspect the carcass, take tissue samples and determine a cause of death.
The whale, possibly a fin whale, has since been towed out of the harbor and was beached Wednesday night on the shores of the base.
Scientists believe the whale was possibly struck by a ship before it floated into the port.
Once the necropsy is completed Thursday night, Gearhart said the carcass would be towed 25 miles offshore and set adrift.
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