Experts Spark Concern Over Elusive Beaked Whales Found Near Netherlands Beach

Beaked whales, which are unusual and seldom observed because they are usually found in deeper waters, have been sighted in the Netherlands close to the coast in fast succession.

Three beaked whales were observed relatively near a beach off the coast of the Netherlands on July 19, according to the SOS Dolphin Foundation, necessitating building a human barricade to keep the whales away from the shore and the possibility of becoming stranded.

SOS Dolphin Foundation is urging people to report the whereabouts of the animals rather than approach them.

Fishermen Process Baird's Beaked Whale Caught In Approved Coastal Whaling — CHIBA, JAPAN - JULY 21: A fisher notes details as she stands next to a newly-caught 10.5 metre Baird's Beaked Whale before it is slaughtered on July 21, 2020 in Wada Port, Chiba, Japan. Despite criticism following Japans withdrawal from the International Whaling Commission (IWC) last year, the country has resumed limited commercial whale fishing after an effective ban of over 30 years. Japan has long claimed that whale hunting is a part of its culture, with some coastal communities having hunted the mammals for over 400 years and the meat considered a national delicacy. Carl Court/Getty Images

Beaked Whales Spotted Off Coast of Netherlands 'Worrying,' Experts Say

DutchNews.nl, citing the SOS, mentioned that the sighting is "worrying" since deep sea whales have difficulty surviving in the North Sea's shallow waters.

SOS shared footage on Twitter showing that beachgoers successfully directed one creature back toward the ocean.

@twitter|https://twitter.com/SOSDolfijn/status/1549414359817912326@

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Since ancient times, cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises) have been washing up in the UK.

NDTV pointed out that all cetaceans, marine turtles, and basking sharks that beach off the British coast are investigated by the Cetacean Strandings Study Programme (CSIP).

Since the CSIP was established in 1990, data on over 17,850 stranded cetaceans in the UK have been gathered.

According to research from the ZSL Institute of Zoology, roughly 4,300 necropsies have been carried out, producing one of the largest research datasets on strandings and causes of mortality worldwide.

About Beaked Whales

Newsweek (via Republic World) noted 24 kinds of unusual solitary whales, including beaked whales.

The animals, which may grow to a maximum height of 42 feet, are renowned among marine mammals for making careful, deep dives in search of food.

Beaked whales can dive to a depth of 9,000 feet, and while underwater, they have a breath-holding capacity of about four hours.

According to Rob Deaville, project manager for the CSIP at the Zoological Society of London, the shape of the North Sea is one of the reasons beaked whales wash up on the shore.

Although, many of these animals die due to predators, plastic pollution, and noise pollution.

"In the North Sea, there is a long historical record of beaked whale strandings," Deaville told Newsweek.

Deaville claims that a similar incident occurred in 2010 when a pod of beaked whales refloated in the Netherlands came to rest on a British beach in Kent on the opposite side of the English Channel.

A widely dispersed and varied class of totally aquatic placental marine mammals are whales.

The least well-known mammals are "beaked whales," which are members of the cetacean order due to their deep-sea habitat and seeming low population.