For those who follow me on Facebook, you saw the pictures I took of the dead sperm whale that washed up on the shores of Boca Raton on Friday (January 10, 2014). Since this is one of those “once in a lifetime” experiences, I’d thought I’d share them here as well just in case you’re not on the book of face.
As an animal lover, I hate to see things like this, but afterall… it’s all part of the circle of life. What’s born, must die. In this case, a large mammal died in full view of gawkers like myself.
The 35 – 40 foot long whale was estimated to weigh in at 15 tons and was dead when it landed on the beach. Sharks were spotted feeding off it and it’s believed that the animal died in Key West and floated up north before landing in Boca Raton. So far, the cause of death has not been determined, but I’ve heard that it could have been hit by a boat or attacked by a shark. Whatever the case, its death in Boca caused such a sight as people lined up along A1A to go snap photos of the giant mammal – myself included.
It was certainly a sad sight.
And a smelly one.
The whale was eventually towed out to sea.