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Dead minke whale washes up in Ventura
Biologists on Tuesday examined a minke whale that washed up dead on a popular Ventura beach.
The 15-foot-long whale was estimated at 1,000 pounds and believed to be a baby, said Griff Hutton, a state beach lifeguard.
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More from Local NewsBiologists from the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History collected tissue samples and performed a necropsy. "They think it's 1 month old," Hutton said.
The whale washed ashore overnight or during the early morning near a rock jetty at the end of San Pedro Street near San Buenaventura State Beach. Some surfers first spotted it floating dead near Surfers Point on Monday, and the museum asked to be notified once it beached, Hutton said.
It's the first whale to wash up along Ventura's shoreline since a gray four years ago, and the first minke Hutton can remember in his 20 years here, he said.
Minke whales can grow to be 25 to 30 feet long and weigh 6 to 7.5 tons. Minke whales are the smallest and most abundant baleen whale, a species known for having dozens of throat grooves. They have two blowholes, like all baleen whales.
The whale will be buried on state beach property, Hutton said.
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