Dead whale found on Asir beach in Saudi Arabia

The carcass of a Humpback whale washed up on Al-Qahmah beach in the Asir region of Saudi Arabia’s southwest. (SPA)

• Whales enter the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf by swimming next to the large ships and tankers
• They often lose their way and suffocate through drought and hot weather, or crash against the propellers of large oil tankers

JEDDAH: The Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture discovered the body of a humpback whale on the shore of Al-Qahmah Center Beach in Asir last Saturday.
The Director of the Fisheries Branch in Al-Qahmah, Ali Hamdi, said: “Immediately after we received a notification from the border guards about spotting a dead marine animal at the Al-Qahmah Center, five km away from the fishermen’s shore inside the sea, our field teams were dispersed to explore the spot and what sort of animal it was, as well as the cause of its death.”
He added: “We detected the species was a humpback whale, one of the largest marine organisms in the oceans, with its adults ranging in length from 12 to 16m and a circumference of between 4 and 6m. This specific whale is of the baleen species and can often be found in the Red Sea.
Hamdi said that the whales enter the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf by swimming next to the large ships and tankers coming in through the ocean, often losing their way there and suffocating through drought and the hot weather, or crashing against one of the engines of the large oil tankers.
An immediate committee of border guards and fisheries, along with personnel from the municipality of Al-Qahmah, was formed to get rid of the body by burying it according to the specialists in the fishery, about 10 meters from the beach and the parks.
The hunchback whale is known to weigh between 20 and 30 tons, and is also prone to taking extremely long journeys across oceans. It is one of the marine species that is famous for its long periods of fasting, going on for months during the hibernation season.
On Monday, the Red Sea Development Company announced that it was forming an advisory board to help develop plans for environmental protection, restoration of natural resources and to help expand the tourism sector by establishing a luxurious spot for lovers of nature and adventure.
The Environmental Affairs at the General Authority of Meteorology and Environmental Protection is also working on marine-friendly initiatives, monitoring the environment and preventing water pollution.