PRACHUAP KHIRI KHAN — A huge whale from a threatened species was killed in a boat collision and found Friday morning off Koh Phang beach in the southern province of Prachuap Khiri Khan.
Chumpon Yodwipan, a local wildlife monitor, said the whale was found Friday morning by local fishermen near Koh Phang, located nearly 3 kilometers from the Khlong Wan Beach. The whale’s swollen body reportedly measured 10 meters and weighed over 10 tons.
The whale’s body was pulled to the shore by a boat for examination by marine and coastal resource officers, Chumphon said by phone Friday afternoon.
He said the whale appeared to be about 7 years old. He was told by marine officers that it had been dead for more than seven days and a fatal wound was found on the creature’s back, suggesting it had been hit by a boat.
Bryde’s whales were once commonly found in the Gulf of Thailand, where several die annually, usually from encounters with people.
Legal protection under the 1992 Wild Animal Reservation and Protection Act was extended to the species last year, as only 52 Bryde’s whales were thought remaining in the gulf.