Too big to bury? Dead whale towed from one Coromandel beach to another causes stir

Tuesday, 25 October 2022

A sperm whale lies dead at the southern end of Wharekaho/ Simpsons Beach. Video first published October 25 2022.

At 16m-long and an estimated 40 tonnes, a washed up sperm whale is causing a stir at a tiny beachside settlement on the Coromandel.

The whale initially washed up at Matapaua Bay, 15km north of Whitianga, at the weekend. It is unknown if it was alive when washed ashore but once found dead was towed almost 12km south to Wharekaho Beach, adjacent to the marae of local iwi Ngāti Hei.

The whale was moved so the iwi could ensure correct tikanga could be better followed.

Ngāti Hei are now working through their operation plan with assistance from DOC as to how the whale carcass is dealt with next.

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Residents watch the whale from a distance at Wharekaho, in Mercury Bay. The whale’s size means it is unlikely to be buried in one piece.

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A sperm whale lies dead at the southern end of Wharekaho/ Simpsons Beach. It was found on Saturday at Matapaua Bay and was towed to its current location on Sunday.

According to iwi, the sperm whale has been given the name Puhiwai Rangi, which refers to the name of the whenua adjacent to the place where the dead whale beached.

Meanwhile, the marine salvage contractor involved with the towing operation on Saturday said the tow was standard procedure for his company.

”We just put a tow-rope around its tail and headed for Wharekaho like we were told to do.”

However, the decision taken by DOC and Ngāti Hei to relocate the whale from an unpopulated beach to one with residents and beach goers shortly before the summer holiday season has been met with some scepticism by some locals.

Wharekaho Beach residents David and Diane Macbeth are confused as to why the whale was moved in the first place and say the animal deserves better.

The whale lies in the tideline anchored to a digger at the southern end of Wharekaho/ Simpsons Beach.

“It seems a very undignified end for a beautiful creature.

“The smell is going to be awful for a start.”

Once towed to the beach, the carcass was met by two diggers that had planned to move the carcass further up the beach.

“The carcass arrived here on Sunday morning, and we have been using our 35 and 30 tonne diggers to try and move the whale up the beach”, said Ray Blackler of Roadworx, the Whitianga contractors tasked with moving the whale.

While the carcass could be moved, diggers risked damaging the whale if it was handled much more.

“Yesterday and this morning our crew managed to pull it further up the beach, but if we moved it too far we’d risk mutilating it”, Blackler explained.

A warning to beach goers not to swim at Wharekaho Beach after DOC and iwi decided to relocate a whale carcass to the beach from further up the coast.

The carcass now sits in the surf, anchored in place by a cable attached to one of the diggers.

But according to Blackler burying the whale isn’t a likely option either.

“We couldn’t dig a hole deep enough in this sort of sand to bury it. You’d just end up with a sand castle.”

In the meantime, a rāhui was placed over Wharekaho Beach on Tuesday morning. It will be in place at the beach for five days.

Stuff understands that a team of experts from Whangārei are set to arrive and begin a process similar to a dissection of the carcass.

This process might include removing bones and elements of the whale that have significance in Māori culture.

Ngāti Hei kaumātua Joe Davis says: “The gift from Tangaroa, Puhiwai Rangi has been brought back to Wharekaho. The taonga will live on with cultural significance and respect”.