NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather forecasts

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
    • The Great NZ Road Trip
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Stranded humpback whale to spend second night on Northland beach

By Lindy Laird
Northern Advocate·
6 Aug, 2018 07:17 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

One of two humpback whales stranded on a Northland beach has died.

A humpback whale stranded on a Northland beach will remain on the sand for a second night despite the best efforts of rescuers.

The smaller of the two whales stuck on sand in the mid-tide zone a couple of kilometres south of Bayly's Beach died around 7.15am today.

The afternoon attempt to float the larger whale off the beach at high tide failed and would be tried again tomorrow.

All day Sunday and that night, the distressed whales had softly called to each other while lying trapped on the unforgiving sand.

But as the smaller whale's moans became less frequent then stopped altogether, the larger one displayed anguished behaviour and, as the life left its stranded companion, it slapped its tail up and down on the sand.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

''That's the last time it made a sound or moved its tail,'' Project Jonah co-ordinator Daren Grover said a few hours later as the rescue effort focused on the survivor.

Today's effort started at dawn. Two diggers carved a trench the size of an Olympic pool around the whale, with a nearly 3-metre high sandbank.

The plan was to breach the wall when the incoming tide was high enough, filling the trench with water deep enough for the whale to float.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The dream was the whale could get to the water and head straight out to sea.

The animal had been fairly still, occasionally moving its flippers, but as the wall was breached and the incoming tide washed around it, it slapped its tail.

Two hundred people let out a cheer, but if they expected the huge creature to miraculously float then swim down the trench to freedom, they were disappointed.

The water may not have been deep enough, the whale too exhausted or it would not leave the dead one.

Discover more

New Zealand

Stranded whale still alive

06 Aug 08:00 PM
New Zealand

Stranded whale too weak to be saved, to be killed today

06 Aug 08:55 PM
New Zealand

Stranded whales believed attacked by orcas

25 Nov 06:14 PM

Earlier, whale expert Dr Ingrid Visser said the whale's breathing had been irregular at times but otherwise it was in ''pretty good shape''.

There were some concerns the weight of its back muscles and flesh had compressed its organs for too long. Another major worry was that if it was female, it could be pregnant.

The smaller one's death had been a huge blow to the trained rescuers and volunteers who spent Sunday night keeping them both wet, hoping the high tide around 4am would float them into the safety of the sea.

But the tide was ''soft'', not very high, and didn't have the depth or heft to shift the whales.

Everyone referred to the 20-plus metre larger whale as ''she''. Visser, one of the leaders of the rescue attempt which involved iwi, Project Jonah, Department of Conservation and the public, said the behaviour was typical of marine females.

It was also more likely a related younger and older female would travel together.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Behind the stranded whale was a shallow, whale belly-deep channel back into the water.

''See that,'' Visser said. ''She made that when she was coming to help the smaller one. She inched her way toward that one, what that effort cost her we can only imagine, but it looks like the young one got trapped first and she responded to its calls.

''We wouldn't call it a calf,'' Visser said of the smaller one. ''We don't know how they are related but we're pretty sure they are, and they may have been travelling up to the tropics for the breeding season.''

It is uncommon but not unknown for whale species including pygmy sperm whales, to be caught on the beach or their carcasses wash up.

Sonny Nesbit, Te Roroa Trust chairman, said it was the first rescue of humpbacks he had seen on the 100km long beach west of Dargaville.

''Last night was clear and it was a sky full of stars, and the whales were both pretty settled,'' Nesbit said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

It was as if the whales and the helpers were calmly waiting for that tide to change the tragedy around, he said.

Chief executive Snow Tane said Te Roroa was proud of the Dargaville community and the many people on the beach each day who supported the rescue process.

The whales had come ashore right on the boundary between Te Roroa to the north and Te Uri o Hau to the south.

The dead whale was to be dragged up the beach above the tide line tomorrow to be flensed by iwi. Flensing is the removal of bones, organs and blubber.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

Crime

Man's bedroom meth stash enough to supply Wellington region for two months

15 May 08:00 AM
New Zealand

'Ran across the motorway': Police arrest two after fleeing driver incident

15 May 07:54 AM
New Zealand

Former financial adviser to be extradited to Australia on 136 theft charges

15 May 07:23 AM

The Hire A Hubby hero turning handyman stereotypes on their head

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

Man's bedroom meth stash enough to supply Wellington region for two months

Man's bedroom meth stash enough to supply Wellington region for two months

15 May 08:00 AM

He failed to convince a judge that the stash was to feed his own addiction.

'Ran across the motorway': Police arrest two after fleeing driver incident

'Ran across the motorway': Police arrest two after fleeing driver incident

15 May 07:54 AM
Former financial adviser to be extradited to Australia on 136 theft charges

Former financial adviser to be extradited to Australia on 136 theft charges

15 May 07:23 AM
Health NZ confirms 377 roles cut, despite ongoing legal challenge

Health NZ confirms 377 roles cut, despite ongoing legal challenge

15 May 07:06 AM
Gold demand soars amid global turmoil
sponsored

Gold demand soars amid global turmoil

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP