You’ve probably seen news articles about the pod of Pilot Whales that found themselves in the very out-of-range location of Amble, on the Northumberland coast, last Sunday.
The NEWT team were having a day out walking on the coast just north of there when they had a ‘phone call to say there was a group of at least 20 near the mouth of the river Coquet, so plans for the rest of the day were quickly abandoned and they found themselves on the top of a dune at Warkworth, then on the dunes at Amble Links, as part of a volunteer monitoring effort observing what turned out to be in excess of 40 whales.
Sadly, on Monday morning, a small number of animals were stranded/stranding near the southern tip of Coquet Island. Two were confirmed dead by marine mammal medics from British Divers Marine Life Rescue, and that total rose to six on Tuesday morning while Martin was on Amble quayside being interviewed for BBC Look North. That was followed by a trip to the BBC Radio Newcastle studios on Wednesday morning for another interview.
Comments on social media posts about the interviews have highlighted that people don’t necessarily know what to do, so here’s the official advice for England and Wales from the gov.uk website:
If you find a dead whale, dolphin, porpoise, seal, shark, or marine turtle, on a beach please report it to the UK Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme 0800 6520333.
If you see an animal that is injured, distressed, stranded or entangled, do not approach it, touch it or attempt to return it to the sea. Please report the incident by calling the British Divers Marine Life Rescue hotline 01825 765546
In Scotland you can report a dead whale, dolphin, porpoise or seal to the Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme by calling or texting 07979 245893 or emailing reports@strandings.org
