This is the third stranding of this type of whale on the Île de Ré in 70 years.

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Dominique Chevillon / Re Environment

  • A Cuvier's beaked whale ran aground a few days ago on a beach on Île de Ré.

  • It is quite rare to be able to observe this animal from the depths, yet common in the Bay of Biscay.

  • Experts from the Pelagis National Stranding Network dissected the whale on the beach but the cause of death could not be determined.

It's a strange whale that was found a few days ago on the beach at Les Granges on the Ile de Ré.

"This is the third Cuvier's beaked whale (Ziphius cavirostris) to run aground in seventy years on the island of Ré", specifies Dominique Chevillon, president of the Ré Environnement association, which is part of the national network Pelagis stranding.

The beaked whale has been dissected by experts from the Pelagis network.

- Dominique Chevillon / Re Environment

This stranding was the opportunity for the network to learn more about this toothed (and not baleen) whale, considered common in the Bay of Biscay.

“It is also called a goose-billed whale because it does not have an elongated snout at all but rather something that resembles a dolphin's rostrum,” explains Dominique Chevillon.

The corpse contained traces of bruising, but the cause of death could not be determined.

- Dominique Chevillon / Re Environment

Bruises on the animal's body

They are deep-sea animals, which can be found between minus 1,500 and minus 3,000 meters, and which feed on cephalopods such as large squids.

A dissection of this adult whale of just under 7 meters with a weight of about 3 tons to 3.5 tons was conducted by specialists from the Pelagis network, on the beach and small squids were discovered in its stomach.

"Traces of hematoma were found but it is very difficult to diagnose the cause of death which dated back to two or three days," emphasizes Dominique Chevillon.

Often these whales die when struck by ships.

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The Cuvier's beaked whale is a species that likes the depths.

- Dominique Chevillon / Re Environment

As it is rare to observe these marine mammals at leisure in their environment, strandings are an opportunity for naturalists.

"It is through strandings that we have been able to advance knowledge about these animals, their anatomy for example," underlines the president of Ré Environnement, who highlights the relevance of the national stranding network, a unique tool which not all countries have.

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