Small Whale Washes Ashore Florida

Mary Maurie was swimming with her grandson just north of Crescent Beach when they spotted what they thought was a sluggish dolphin just feet away from them."I said, 'We better go follow it' because I'm always saving everything," Maurie said. "We followed it and it started to roll, and then I knew it was hurt."It was hurt or sick, and the animal washed all the way up to the sand. That's when Maurie and her grandson went into action. They poured buckets of water on the mammal and placed wet towels on it. Maurie had someone call 911. A crowd started to gather.The animal was actually a 7 foot long, 250 pound pygmy sperm whale.Biologists say that kind of whale is out in the Atlantic near Florida, but rarely do they come close to shore unless they are sick.Despite all the effort, the small whale died. It was taken to the Florida Wildlife Research Institute in St. Petersburg where a necropsy will be performed.As for Maurie, she didn't want to tell her grandson the whale had died. She wanted the animal to make it as well. It had seemed so friendly when it was in the water close to them.
Source: http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/