BFAR to conduct autopsy on whale found in Manila Bay

MANILA, Philippines – The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) will conduct an autopsy on a female whale that turned up dead in Manila Bay off the Manila South Harbor port on Tuesday morning. In an interview on dzBB radio, BFAR head Malcolm Sarmiento Jr said an autopsy would ascertain the whale's cause of death. He noted that wounds were found on the whale's body, but they have yet to determine whether these were acquired post-mortem. The five-ton minke whale, a female, was found earlier in the day. "Marami siyang sugat na natamo at makikita natin sa autopsy kung ang sugat na ito ay post-mortem o bago siya namatay (She had several wounds and we will see in the autopsy whether these were acquired post-mortem or before she died)," Sarmiento said. Sarmiento also said environment changes due to climate change may have contributed to the whale's death. "Isa yan sa mga posibilidad dahil hindi pangkaraniwan na makikita tayo ng ganito kalaking isda, balyena, sa loob ng Manila Bay (That is one of the possibilites because it's not common for us to see something this big, a whale, inside Manila Bay)," Sarmiento said. After the autopsy, the whale may be brought to their station in Dagupan in Pangasinan or submerged in the sea to prevent humans from consuming its meat, the official said. - Johanna Camille Sisante, Sophia Dedace, GMANews.TV