13m Large Whale Autopsy Conducted in Korea for the First Time... Nets and Fishing Lines Found Inside Stomach

An autopsy is being conducted on the morning of the 3rd at Hallim Port on a Bryde's whale, the height of a 4-story apartment, found last month in the sea near Biyangdo, Hallim-eup, Jeju City. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Heo Midam] Domestic whale experts conducted an autopsy on a large whale carcass found off the coast of Jeju on the 3rd.

The autopsy revealed fishing lines and other debris in the stomach, but experts have tentatively concluded that such marine litter did not directly cause the whale's death.

About 30 whale-related experts from Jeju National University, Seoul National University, Inha University, Hanyang University, Chungnam National University, and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) participated in the whale autopsy that day.

Although it was initially suggested that the whale might have died from ingesting marine debris, about 1 meter long fishing lines and a piece of net were found in the stomach, indicating that marine litter was unlikely to be the direct cause of death.

Additionally, the research team found traces that the whale had consumed plankton and other food, lowering the possibility of starvation.

The research team plans to take tissue samples from the whale's organs to test for parasites, diseases, and residual organic pollutants to determine the cause of death. These tests will be conducted separately, with results expected in about a month.

On the 3rd, at Hallim Port in Jeju City, an autopsy was performed on a Bryde's whale carcass found in the waters off Jeju on the 22nd of last month, revealing a fishing line approximately 1 meter long inside its intestines. Photo by Yonhap News

The whale was discovered on the 22nd of last month about 40 km northwest off Biyangdo, Hallim-eup, Jeju City, by the Yeosu-registered single trawl purse seine vessel H.

Initially presumed to be a minke whale, DNA analysis confirmed it as a gray whale. The whale was female, measuring 12.6 meters in length and weighing approximately 12 tons.

While autopsies on whale and other marine mammal carcasses have been conducted in Korea before, this is the first autopsy of a large whale over 10 meters.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.