ROCKAWAY PARK — A dead humpback whale washed up Tuesday morning along Rockaway Beach, officials said.
The whale was first spotted by the Coast Guard on Monday evening floating nine miles offshore, according to Rachel Bosworth, a spokeswoman for the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society.
It was found near Beach 117th Street in Rockaway Park at around 7 a.m. Tuesday, beached along the shore.
The Atlantic Marine Conservation Society is currently working with the Department of Sanitation and Office of Emergency Management to determine the best way to perform a necropsy on the approximately 25- to 30 foot-long whale, she said.
A representative from the AMCS should be able to go out to the whale during the next low tide cycle by today or Wednesday.
Whale beached on Beach 118th St in Rockaway Park (video: Robert Maggio) pic.twitter.com/X9WFWtNlvL
— Frank H Jump (@FadingAd) April 4, 2017
Whales have taken to the waters around New York City in recent years, and it's common to see them off the coast of the Rockaway peninsula during the summer. A whale was spotted swimming around the Statue of Liberty last fall.
But the local waters can also be dangerous for them. Earlier this year a dead whale washed up near LaGuardia Airport, and in 2015 a Minke whale washed up at Coney Island. Officials said that whale was likely killed when a boat struck it in the ocean.
