Five whales die after ‘extremely rare’ beaching off Italy
By Deepa Babington ROME (Reuters) – At least five whales have died after nine beached themselves off Italy’s southern coast, in what experts called a highly unusual event in Mediterranean waters. The whales, measuring up to 10 meters long and weighing several tones each, were found stranded off the coast of Puglia on Thursday, the environment ministry said. Four were already dead and the rest were dying, the ministry said. Nine whales initially beached themselves but two managed to escape into deeper waters, environmental group Greenpeace said, calling it “extraordinary” both for the size of the beaching as well as the unlikely presence of whales in the area at this time of the year. Another whale died on Saturday and the remaining two will be put down since there is little hope of saving them, local news agencies reported. “A massive beaching is extremely rare in the Mediterranean,” biologist Maurizio Wurtz at the University of Genoa told La Stampa daily. Experts say the beachings are more likely to occur in areas like Australia. …
