A humpback whale was found dead on the coast of Manzanillo, Colima, according to the University Group for Research on Marine Mammals (GUIMM). The discovery was made Sunday afternoon by fishermen in the region, who immediately reported the incident to authorities.
The Manzanillo City Council reported that in coordination with the GUIMM and the Mexican Navy Secretariat (Semar), they carried out the corresponding maneuvers to move the specimen to the mainland, where it was buried.
The Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (Profepa) also participated in the work.
In order to carry out the burial of the humpback whale, the federal and municipal authorities used heavy machinery.
It was approximately at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday that the population and interested parties were informed through social networks that they had concluded the work to bury the mammal.
The municipality’s Environment Directorate thanked the curious for having respected the established perimeter to be able to carry out the maneuvers that allowed the humpback whale to be removed from the sea, and placed in a location where its decomposition does not cause water contamination and a risk to the health of bathers.
Dr. Christian Ortega, a specialist at the GUIMM of Colima, mentioned that once buried, the remains of the marine animal will carry out their natural decomposition process. When the bones can be extracted, the cause of death will be known and they can be used for didactic and educational purposes at UCol.
The Manzanillo Environment Directorate declared that this specimen will be used for scientific research and dissemination by the University of Colima (UCol); this will be done after decomposition of the whale, and bones will be collected for research.
