Shark Feeds on Humpback Whale Carcass off Long Island
A shark was seen feeding on a humpback whale’s carcass in the open waters south of East Hampton, New York, on May 31.
Christopher Paparo, who recorded and shared this drone footage to his Fish Guy Photos YouTube channel, told Storyful that after being notified of the deceased whale, he found a “decent-sized great white feeding on the carcass.”
“You’ll see it chomp away and take off a huge chunk of blubber,” Paparo said, adding that “this is the same whale that washed into Shinnecock Bay the next day.”
On June 2, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said a necropsy was performed on the whale. They found that “while this carcass was heavily decomposed, scientists observed bruising in the blubber & muscle on both sides of the head,” adding that the cause of death was “suspected blunt force trauma.”
The NOAA reported that another deceased whale was also spotted on May 31 in Raritan Bay, New Jersey, but “While these whales were seen on the same day, their different level of decomposition indicates that these strandings were not related.” Credit: @fishguyphotos via Storyful
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