The British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) were notified on 20 September after sightings of the pod were reported near the shore off Warkworth, Northumberland. Local boats containing medics were dispatched in an attempt to herd the whales away from the shore, however a number of them did not respond. A group of the whales were surrounding one of the larger whales that was motionless in the water. Eventually, it became too dark to work safely so the operation was forced to cease for the remainder of the night.
In the morning BDMLR was alerted by The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) on Coquet Island of numerous whales stranded on the rocky ledges of the island. Upon arrival, BDMLR confirmed there were six pilot whales stranded with two dead. Rescue operations were then commenced to refloat the whales. However, they were faced with fast changing tides, limited access to the island and dangerous terrain. Ultimately, they were not able to refloat the animals before the tide retreated and had to withdraw.
The following morning an assessment was carried out by BDMLR; finding all six pilot whales had died. The Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme is conducting post-mortem examinations in order to gain a clearer understanding of the health of the whales and possible reasons for the stranding.
There can be numerous factors as to why cetaceans such as whales, dolphins and porpoises strand. A major cause of stranding can be that the animals become disoriented as they chase prey into shallow waters.
Sick or dying whales may move into shallow water and strand, with other members of the pod following. Pilot whales have a very complex limbic system, which is used for emotional processing and regulation. This allows them to form deep social bonds and provides an instinct to stick together in times of trouble.
For species that use echolocation, signal disruptions from the coastal topography can lead to navigation issues. Magnetic anomalies, noise pollution and military sonar can also affect their ability to echolocate.
As BDMLR had to withdraw overnight in their herding attempts, it is not confirmed whether the six pilot whales found dead were from the 40 distressed pilot whales showing signs of stranding the day before. BDMLR have remained along the coastline in order to lookout for the pod of pilot whales, with no reports of sightings as of yet. There is the hope that they have managed to retreat back to deeper offshore waters, which is their normal habitat.