Dwarf sperm whale found dead in southern Cebu town

Micole Gerard Tizon

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Dwarf sperm whale found dead in southern Cebu town
The young whale is found in Samboan, one of the 42 municipalities along the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape

CEBU, Philippines – A bloodied juvenile dwarf sperm whale was found dead on the shores of Samboan town, south of Cebu, on Sunday afternoon, June 2. 

The baby whale measured 1.03 meters long. Mature sperm whales grow up to 2.5 to 3 meters in length, said Kristina Luz Tapales of SMARTSeas PH-TSPS (Tañon Strait Protected Seascape).  

According to a Facebook post of SMARTSeas PH, Samboan is one of the 42 municipalities along the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape. 

The strait is a marine key biodiversity area and is considered as a top marine mammal corridor in the country.  

“Necropsy was done, no plastics were found inside the belly. Tissue samples are to be submitted to Silliman University for further tests,” said Tapales. 

Necropsy is autopsy for animals. 

Tapales said that the whale was found by locals. Irwin Gamalle of the Samboan local government unit called her for identification.  

“I initially identified it as a pygmy sperm whale, but upon further discussion, we identified it as a dwarf sperm whale, and Dr Teri Aquino of the Marine Wildlife Watch of the Philippine confirmed the species.” she added. – Rappler.com 

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