MOSSEL BAY NEWS - People who come across a whale stranded on the beach and who witness efforts to refloat the animal, may wish to assist.
In towns where there is not a large Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) presence, sometimes there are non-profit organisations which have undergone training provided by this department and are approved by authorities to deal with animal strandings.
In the Mossel Bay area, the Stranded Marine Animal Rescue Team (S.M.A.R.T.) is such an organisation. S.M.A.R.T. also deals with turtle and penguin strandings, among others.
Protocol
The Department of Environmental Affairs: Oceans and Coasts is the main authority which prescribes protocol regarding marine strandings.
SANParks, CapeNature
Areas which do not fall within the jurisdiction of the DEA are national parks, such as Kruger and Table Mountain, under the control of SANParks and the marine protected areas of Robberg, Goukamma and Stil Bay, which fall under CapeNature. In the case of strandings, SANParks and CapeNature are the authorities in these areas respectively.
DEA: Oceans and Coasts national director, communications, Zolile Nqayi, confirmed to the Mossel Bay Advertiser he is aware of S.M.A.R.T.
S.M.A.R.T. also works closely with the NSRI, the Seabird and Penguin Rehabilitation Centre (SAPREC) based at Mossdustria and the SPCA.
Municipal spokesperson Colin Puren said: "In the event of the stranding of a live animal, the Department of Environmental Affairs is the lead authority. It will assess the situation and make a decision on whether there should be any attempts to re-float the animal or if it needs to be euthanised.
"In the case of euthanisation, the DEA must inform the municipality of when and how it will be done, so appropriate arrangements can be made. In the past, when there have been live strandings, crowd control has been an issue. Dealing with live whales is very dangerous and it is important that the public allow the DEA and the NSRI to do what needs to be done.
"The Mossel Bay Municipality is responsible for the disposal of the carcass. This typically involves the use of heavy machinery to remove the carcass from the beach. The carcass is then taken to the "PetroSA landfill site for disposal. Where necessary the Mossel Bay Municipality will close the beach by erecting the appropriate signs. This is done as there is usually increased shark activity at the beaches closest to where the carcass is.
"In the past year there have been two workshops to provide training to members of S.M.A.R.T. and other interested parties. These workshops were presented by Oceans Research and the DEA. The idea is to ensure there are people who are able to assist the DEA. Groups like S.M.A.R.T. are important, yet it is important for everyone to understand that these situations are potentially very dangerous and the instructions of the relevant authorities should always be adhered too. Thus far co-operation has been good," Puren concluded.
Currently implosion is used to euthanise whales. Put extremely simply, explosives are placed on the whale's head where the brain is located. The explosives are covered with sandbags and then detonated. The whale is killed instantly. The explosives usually create a neat, clean square hole in the whale's head. Death by lethal injection requires too much poison and any animals, whether dogs on the beach or seabirds, who eat the flesh of the whale, are poisoned.
Marais told the Advertiser: "S.M.A.R.T. is in constant communication with the DEA. With regards to the whale stranded at Dias Beach, we notified it immediately.
If a lone whale strands, as opposed to mass strandings, it is usually because it is unwell. There were barnacles on the whale which do not occur on a healthy, fast-swimming specimen, so we had good reason to conclude the whale was sick, hence our decision to euthanise it."
She also noted that an attempt to refloat it was unsuccessful.
Report strandings by contacting the S.M.A.R.T. emergency number: 072 227 4715.
ARTICLE: LINDA SPARG, MOSSEL BAY ADVERTISER JOURNALIST
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