The rare sighting of a Killer Whale stranded on a beach in Mayo was too much of an opportunity for some people who cut off the head of the animal as a souvenir.
The Killer whale or Orca was reported stranded on Doohoma Beach in Tullaghan Bay in Erris on October 4 last and after examination it was discovered to be heavily pregnant. The whale was due to be taken away but the following day the skull and jaw bones were defaced by someone using a chainsaw.
Irene O’Brien of the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group told The Mayo News that the whale was to be brought to National History Museum in Dublin for display.
“The stranding of a Killer Whale is very unusual on Irish beaches and it was to be brought to the National History Museum in Dublin. However, someone took off the head with a chainsaw and obviously took it home, which is a shame. Instead of being put on display it was buried on the beach by Mayo County Council,” she said.
The 18 foot long whale had turned red when it was discovered which suggested it was stranded for a few days before it was reported. This was only the 15th stranding recorded of this species in Ireland since records began and this was the seventh in 40 years.
Last August a male Risso dolphin became stranded on beach at nearby Doolough and last week a number of seal pups were washed up on beaches around Erris. However, Irene explained that reasons why whales and dolphins strand remain a mystery.
“Killer Whales move around the Atlantic but are more commonly seen around the south-west coast of Ireland and are only sporadically seen around the west coast. We have no understanding as to why they strand and we don’t know why this whale stranded here.”
A post mortem of the whale was carried out on the carcass on October 10 and samples of different parts of the whale were taken for analysis. The stomach contents were also examined and there were fish remains and unidentified bones in the stomach but no plastics or litter.
When the abdominal cavity was opened, they found a large, near-term foetus of a 2.09m female. Newborn calves are believed to be 2.5m long and this was fully formed with large teeth and visible white eye-patches. The dorsal fin and tail flukes were soft, to aid in delivery and usually stiffen soon after birth.
(why can't people leave things alone?) 
