Feb 27, 2008 6:38 pm US/Eastern
Pygmy Sperm Whale Found Off Florida Keys Dies
Call 305-451-4774 To Donate To The MMC
KEY LARGO (CBS4) ―
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The team at the Marine Mammal Conservancy (MMC) put a tube through the whale's mouth, poured in a mixture of water and Pedialyte, as part of its treatment.
CBS
"Gauge", the pygmy sperm whale found stranded in shallow waters off the Florida Keys, died Wednesday while in the care of the Marine Mammal Conservancy in Key Largo.
Volunteers were preparing the ten-and-a-half-foot-long whale for an endoscopy, but the animal unexpectedly died before the procedure began.
Officials don't know why the roughly thousand-pound whale died or why he became stranded in the first place. They have been performing tests since finding him Saturday.
A necropsy will be performed at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations National Marine Fisheries Laboratory in Miami.MMC President Robert Lingenfelser told
CBS4 News that "Gauge" was showing "slight" improvement in his bloodwork on Monday, but they were still waiting for results of other cultures that test for bacteria and viruses.
"Gauge" was supposed to undergo an ultrasound and additional cardiac testing this weekend.
Rescue teams spent hours moving the whale into a truck and transported the animal to the MMC, where the all-volunteer team at the Conservancy hoped to rehabilitate the mammal and eventually release it.
The MMC volunteers maintained a 24-hour watch on the whale in the Conservancy's rehabilitation lagoon, working four-hour shifts, round-the-clock, helping to support and comfort the whale.
According to the American Cetacean Society's Web site, average length for the species is 10 feet and maximum length of adults is 14 feet. The mammal may be found in all temperate, subtropical and tropical waters.
Volunteers are often needed and donations are also being taken. Call
(305) 451-4774 or
click here if you are interested.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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