A young humpback whale washed onto a beach in Marshfield on Thursday, the day after Christmas, making it the sixth large whale stranding in Massachusetts in as many months, according to a marine mammal rescue group.
Whale and Dolphin Conservation called the series of incidents dating to July unprecedented.
"This number of whale strandings in our response area is unprecedented," WDC Stranding Coordinator Lauren Brandkamp said in a statement. "We are heartbroken, exhausted, and devastated by these losses, but absolutely committed to understanding the reason this is happening and basing our findings on the best available science."
The humpback, believed to be female and under three years old, was found on Rexhame Beach, according to WDC. Its Marine Animal Rescue and Response team tested the 27.4-foot long body, collecting samples that will help determine the animal's cause of death.
One thing that's not believed to have caused the whale's death is offshore wind farms, which some have been speculating is responsible for the recent strandings, according to WDC Executive Director Regina Asmutis-Silvia.
"We are well aware of social media campaigns which attribute these mortalities to offshore wind development, but, at least in our response area, there are no wind surveys or construction activities taking place," Asmutis-Silvia said in the statement. "Our goal is to use the outcomes of these cases to help save other whales. It is beyond frustrating to have the integrity of our team challenged if our findings don't coincide with someone's political agenda."
Humpbacks, minkes and critically endangered North Atlantic right whales have been stranding in increased numbers since 2016, according to WDC, which said the deaths are usually caused by fishing gear entanglement, ships hitting the animals or infections. They also noted that fish the whales feed on have been swimming increasingly close to shore, which can increase the chances of the animal getting entangled, struck by a ship or sick.
The other recent strandings that the WDC has responded to along Massachusetts' South Shore are two humpbacks (in July off Scituate and this month in Plymouth) and three minkes (August in Duxbury, September in Plymouth and November in Hull).
The whale that washed up in Marshfield this month was buried by Thursday evening, WDC said. An official with the organization told the Cape Cod Times that "crazy waves" and the timing of the stranding during the holidays meant the team wasn't able to collect as much information as they usually do, but no signs of an external injury stood out.
