BBC News, 22 May 2011
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The body of a pilot whale has been found in a Hebridean sea loch as conservationists fear more animals are at risk of being beached.
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| Tests will be carried out on the dead whale |
A pod of about 60 whales had moved from the shallow waters of Loch Carnan, South Uist, and were swimming south.
But British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) later said the animals had headed back into the loch.
Tests will be carried out on the dead whale and rescuers said they were looking to see if more whales had died.
The animals were first spotted around Loch Carnan on Thursday, sparking fears that they would perish in a mass stranding.
Some of them have injuries to their heads, thought to have been sustained while they were stranded.
'Moving away'
BDMLR's Dave Jarvis said the latest movements of the pod were disappointing.
He said: "Unfortunately the pod of pilot whales that it was hoped were moving away from the sea loch earlier have now returned to their original location.
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| Wildlife tour operator Steve Duffield captured this image of the whales |
"Personnel were deployed earlier to search for the group that it was hoped were leaving the area, but they were located not far away, from a land vantage point, by BDMLR operations manager Stephen Marsh and SSPCA senior inspector Calum Watt.
"The animals were observed and disappointingly they retraced their route back into the loch. The whales do not currently appear to be agitated.
"Sadly, it is thought that one of the animals may now have died as a body has apparently been seen in the water."
Mr Jarvis has said the whales could only get stranded at one place - a sandy section of beach at the loch. However, other dangers are posed by the rocky coastline, with its many inlets and bays.
Volunteers from the charity will continue to monitor the whales.
Feed on squid
The Scottish Government has also lent rescuers a fisheries protection boat to follow the animals' movements.
At the end of October last year, some pilot whales almost got stranded in the same sea loch. Less than a week later, 33 whales, believed to be the same group, were found dead on a beach in Co Donegal in the Irish Republic.
Pilot whales prefer deep water but come inshore to feed on squid, their main food.
Last week a pilot whale died on Sunday morning after getting stuck in the Sullom Voe inlet in Shetland. An autopsy was carried out on the animal to try to establish why it died but the results are not yet known.
