PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) – The Corps of Engineers was called to tow a dead juvenile humpback whale to shore Thursday morning.
The Virginia Aquarium Stranding Response Team told 8News affiliate WAVY that it appeared the whale was hit and injured by a ship because it had cut marks on its body.
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Patrick Bloodgood, a spokesperson for the Corps of Engineers’ Norfolk District, said the stranding team called for help to tow the whale around 8:00 a.m. Thursday
The whale was retrieved near the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel and was taken to the Craney Island Dredge Material Management Facility in Portsmouth.
Matt Klepeisz, spokesman for the Virginia Aquarium, told the Associated Press that the whale is 33 feet long and weighs about 10,000 pounds. A necropsy took place Friday.The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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