“A large dark mass that was drifting”: the carcass of a sperm whale found near the shore of Antibes, it is towed offshore

This Monday, August 26, 2024, two fishermen from Antibes, in the Alpes-Maritimes, came across the carcass of a sperm whale at sea. They alerted Cross Med, which brought in scientists to analyze the cetacean, secure the area, and find a way to move it away from the coast.

Monday, August 26, 2024, two fishermen from Antibes discovered the carcass of a sperm whale: “We saw a large dark mass drifting offshore. Cautiously, we didn't know what it was, we approached as close as possible and we saw that it was the carcass of a sperm whale, because we saw its teeth. It must have been between 9 and 10 metres long and was floating on the surface", one of them told Nice-Matin.

"The smell was really too strong"

On Monday afternoon, the Mediterranean maritime prefecture received an alert from the two fishermen "We were informed of the carcass of a marine mammal, 8 metres long, which was drifting in the off the Cap d’Antibes", explains André Grosset, the institution's environmental manager, relayed by France Bleu.

The two men had contacted Cross Med following the discovery of the animal: "IHis stomach was very swollen and his skin was cracked with fissures. We couldn't stay very long because the smell was really too strong. This corpse had probably been floating on the surface for several days".

"Urgent navigator notice"

To avoid any risk of collision with any type of boat, a "urgent navigator notice" was issued by the prefecture.

The French Navy went to the place where the carcass floated with Mediterranean Mine Clearance Divers and a team of scientists from the Port Cros National Park. Their goal was to analyze the causes of the marine mammal's death (impact with a boat, illness, natural death).

The competent authorities tried to oceanize the beast, that is to say, ballast it so that it would sink and decompose in the sea, but it was filled with gas, which kept it on the surface. They decided to tow the sperm whale and take it out to sea, outside the maritime territorial zone.

A beacon will be placed on the corpse to know if the carcass is getting closer to the shore. “The body will then decompose naturally”, adds one of the members of Cross Med on Nice Matin.