Rare deep-water whale species washes up in the Florida Keys [PHOTOS]

Photo by Dolphins Plus Marine Mammal Responder | Facebook

Officers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) responded to a call on Sunday, August 13 of a live dolphin bleeding on the sandbar of Tavernier Island, calling in DPMMR Standing Coordinator, Steve McCulloch to confirm the report; however, when McCulloch arrived on the scene, it was not a dolphin he found, but a rare beaked species of deep-water whale instead.
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According to the August 14 post from Dolphins Plus Marine Mammal Responder on Facebook, the standing coordinator arrived by boat within minutes of receiving the call, locating the large animal in the shallow sand flats.

Assisted by FWC Officer Daniel Marshall and NMFS SER Standing Coordinator, Blaire Maise, a hands-on assessment by McCulloch was able to confirm the animal was actually a very rare, deep-water species of beaked whale known as a Mesoplodont. Further analysis determined that the animal was already deceased.

The post is accompanied by 5 images of the rare species from differing angles.

Mesoplodont are rarely seen outside of deep waters of 300+ meters, as they seek out the cooler temperatures of the Indo-Pacific Ocean. According to Animal Diversity Web, they can be found in oceans around the world except for the coldest zones in the Arctic and are distinguished by their dark grayish-blue to black coloring, beach, and small heads with thick beaks.

As of publication the DPMMR team, along with FWC and the conservation team from Gumbo Limbo Coastal Stewards are coordinating a multi-agency effort to perform a necropsy on the rare marine mammal to take measurements and samples, as well as hopefully determine a cause of death. If additional details become available, Uncovering Florida will update this article.
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The FWC asks if you see a marine mammal in distress to please call 1-888-404-FWCC.
Article by Rachael Volpe