Featured Image Credit: Leigh Calvez via Wikimedia Commons
By Laura O’Brien
A deceased orca was found in Tauranga Harbour, New Zealand on December 3rd. The orca, named Moby, is the first orca to have died in the harbor.
Moby’s body had been violated before officials were made aware of the stranded orca. Someone had found the orca on a remote stretch of beach, and they attempted to cut out the whale’s teeth. Tauranga’s Department of Conservation’s Biodiversity Ranger, Karl McCarthy, described the crime as, “pretty disappointing”. Dr. Ingrid Visser, a founder of the Orca Research Trust, called it, “very distasteful”, and said, “it’s a poor reflection on that individual and they should be ashamed of their actions”.
Once officials found the whale, he was treated with respect. The orca was buried in an undisclosed place that bears cultural significance to iwi in the area. Unlike the criminal who desecrated the whale’s body, the iwi retains the right to remove his teeth; however, they agreed not to remove them. Before he died, Moby regularly visited harbors in the area. Dr. Visser said, “this is a very sad time for us all, but I am grateful for the respect that Moby was shown by those who cared about him”.
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