An international investigation into the stranding of 30 sperm whales in the southern North Sea in 2016 including seven in the Netherlands, has concluded that the event most probably occurred due to a combination of several complex environmental factors as no evidence of man-made trauma was found. The whales had not been the victim of a ship strike or become entangled in nets.
The whales were found stranded across five countries over a period of six weeks in early 2016, after entering the southern North Sea where the water becomes progressively shallower, making this region a global hotspot for sperm whale strandings as it’s difficult for the whales to navigate effectively. In total tests on 27 animals, all young males aged between 10 and 16 years old showed they had probably foraged for the last time at least 1,300 kilometres away in Norwegian waters, as some had high reconstructed squid biomass in their stomachs. It the largest sperm whale mortality event ever recorded in the North Sea.
Details of the full investigation can be accessed here
