Whale, dolphins stranded in separate incidents

A pygmy sperm whale and four dolphins were found washed up along the coast in the past week. But the animals were so far apart that wildlife biologists don’t think the strandings are related.

The whale was discovered Saturday at North Litchfield Beach; the dolphin have been seen since Thursday. One of the dolphin was found at Abbapoola Creek off the Stono River on John’s Island, another in Bull’s Bay off Awendaw. The other two were found on Hilton Head Island and near Lemon Island outside Beaufort.

The run of strandings is odd but not alarming yet, said Wayne McFee, of the National Ocean Service’s marine mammal stranding program. Strandings of both species are seen year-round.

“The fact that they’re spread out over around the state, it could be just that good weather has put people back on the water and they’re spotting them,” McFee said. But program personnel are watching to see if it becomes a trend. A necropsy on the whale found a heart condition and liver trouble and toxicology tests are underway to see if a cause can be pinpointed.

No results were available yet on the dolphin, but the mammals have been found to carry startling amounts of man-made pollutants as well as natural viruses.

Not a lot is known about pygmy sperm whales. They’re not considered endangered, but they’re rarely seen at sea. Strandings of the small whales are not uncommon, with as many as four or five per year in South Carolina. Both natural toxins and man-made pollutants have been identified as causes.

A nursing mother and her calf were found on Sullivan’s Island in June 2009. The mother had swallowed a black plastic trash bag and died of starvation. The calf couldn’t live without her.

The 10-foot, 1,100 pound male was found by Litchfield beachgoers rolling in the incoming tide.

“It’s very sad,” said Lloyd Mackall, of Murrells Inlet, who photographed the stranding with his wife, Kay. “You know it’s nature and that it’s inevitable something will happen. But it’s sad.”

Reach Bo Petersen at 843-937-5744 or bpetersen@postandcourier.com.