Hundreds of whales die in New Zealand

More than 100 whales lost their lives in a collective trapped in New Zealand, officials announced today.

The bodies of pepper whales on the coast of Stewart Island, New Zealand on February 20

AFP quoted the New Zealand Ministry of Conservation as saying that people discovered 107 whales on the coast of Stewart Island yesterday, of which only 48 remained alive. Due to the inability to bring the whales back to the sea, the Conservation Department's lifeguards decided to kill the survivors to help them escape the pain.

' We realize that the effort to free the whales needs at least 10 to 12 hours. In hot and dry weather conditions, they will die before the work is done , 'the Ministry of Conservation spokesman explained.

Also, according to the spokesperson, a storm is about to hit the beach, so the lives of rescue workers and volunteers can be threatened if they try to bring the whales back to the sea.

Pepper whales - up to 6 m long - are the most popular whales in New Zealand waters. They often run aground on rocky beaches. Earlier this month, 14 pepper whales died after being washed into Nelson in South Island. Last month 24 children died because they landed on the coast near Cape Reing in northern New Zealand.

The scientific world cannot explain why the common whale often runs aground. Some argue that they plunge to the shore because their sonar is disturbed in shallow water or by a sick animal that is misguided and others follow.