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Friday, Mar. 12, 1999

Melon-headed whale found stranded on beach

8-foot whale, second mammal beached in area this month, is being cared for at aquarium

By PAIGE ROSS
Staff Writer
Members of the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network worked to aid an adult, melon-headed whale found beached Thursday morning on San Jose Island.
   "They're treating him now, walking around the tank, trying to get him to swim on his own and taking blood samples," said oceanographer Tony Amos, who found the whale about 9:30 a.m. "The blood work is really critical, like if you were taken to the hospital and nobody knew what was wrong."
   The whale, a little more than 8 feet long, is the second mammal found stranded on area beaches this month, officials said.
   "We have no idea why this is happening," said David McKee, associate professor of biology at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi and area coordinator for the stranding network.
   Not much is known about melon-headed whales, which are frequently seen in large groups in tropical waters, Amos said.
   He said there were no external injuries and the whale's teeth are in good shape, indicating he is not an older whale.
   "It felt like a ton, but my guess is that he weighs 350 to 400 pounds," Amos said.
   The animal's weight was causing him problems in shallow water, so rescue workers took him to deeper water.
   "Once we got him past the third sandbar he became quite vigorous and an hour later came back in again," Amos said.
   The whale is being treated in the main building of the Texas State Aquarium, Amos said.
   The whale is in the aquarium in a smaller tank because a bottlenose dolphin is in the annex. The Atlantic bottlenose dolphin was found on March 4 stranded on Padre Island, nine miles south of Bob Hall Pier.
   Aquarium officials said the dolphin is in stable but guarded condition but is now eating and swimming on her own.
   Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network volunteers are working with both animals around the clock.
   Staff writer Paige Ross can be reached at 886-3622 or by e-mail at rossp@caller.com

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