Dead Whale Washes Up On Long Island Shore

AMAGANSETT, NY — A dead whale washed up on the shore in Amagansett Sunday, officials said.

According to the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society, the 35-foot female humpback whale was located near Atlantic Avenue.

The whale was originally reported just offshore of Amagansett by the United States Coast Guard and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Saturday night and was seen in the surf by 8 p.m., AMSEAS said.

On Sunday, the AMSEAS team arrived onsite at 8:45 a.m. to begin an examination to determine a cause of death, if possible, for the animal, "and to continue building on the knowledge gained through the stranding network on the challenges whales, and all marine mammals and sea turtles, are facing in our waters."

Due to safety protocols put in place under Gov. Andrew Cuomo during the coronavirus pandemic, the team said it is taking every necessary precaution to stay safe. The AMSEAS team is also encouraging members of the public to follow all social distancing and health safety recommendations if heading to a beach.

AMSEAS is working with NYS DEC, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration / fisheries, East Hampton Town's marine patrol, and the town of East Hampton to conduct Sunday's examination; the findings will be shared Sunday afternoon.

The whale marks AMSEAS’s third large whale stranding of 2020, with all three strandings taking place in the last three weeks, officials said; it is the second humpback whale to strand on Long Island this year. A 32-foot whale washed up on the beach at Cupsogue in Westhampton last week.

There has been an unusual mortality event in effect for humpback whales along the Atlantic coast since 2016.

The public is urged to keep a distance from marine mammals and sea turtles at all times, and report strandings to the NYS Stranding Hotline at 631-369-9829.