Federal park officials are working to dispose of an engorged whale carcass that appeared off the coast of Staten Island.
The roughly 40-foot humpback whale was first spotted floating near Great Kills Park on Friday morning, according to a spokesperson for the National Parks Service. It's expected to land on the beach later this afternoon.
Humpback whales sightings have surged around New York City in recent years, an influx that has intrigued researchers and raised questions about the animals' migration patterns. But the latest death serves as a grim reminder of the "unusual mortality event" that's accompanied that population boom.
Since 2016, there have been 31 humpback whale fatal strandings in New York, the highest of any other state besides Massachusetts. Roughly half of the deaths are the result of human interaction.
In the New York area, those fatalities are most frequently the result of "ship strike," according to Paul Sieswerda, executive director of Gotham Whale, which monitors the mammals.
"The fact that they’re in our area with high traffic zones of large ships puts them at considerable risk," said Sieswerda. "The more whales there are, the higher the chances of these kind of interactions."
Researchers with the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society were also on scene Friday to help determine cause of death, and to help with moving the enormously heavy marine mammal.
"This is a large animal. It could be as much as 30 tons," said Robert DiGiovanni, the group's chief scientist. "Moving it is very difficult."
Depending on the accessibility of the beach, that may involve carting the whale away or burying it in a remote area. Ever since a controlled demolition of a whale on an Oregon beach went spectacularly awry in 1970, experts have generally steered cleared of the method.
There is, however, a remote possibility that the whale will combust on its own. As the dead whale releases decomposition gases, its blubber serves as an encasement, quickly inflating the body — a process that seems to already be underway in Staten Island.
"There’s all kinds of pressure that build up within the whale. The examiners have to be careful so it doesn’t in fact explode," said Sieswerda. "It’s a gruesome business."
The public is urged to keep a safe distance from the whale.
