Necropsy underway on whale found on bow of cruise ship

A dead fin whale found wedged against the bow of an Alaskan cruise ship in Vancouver will be dropped back into the ocean following an necropsy to determine how it died.The adult whale was discovered lodged on the bulbous bow of the Sapphire Princess when it docked Saturday morning after returning from Alaska. It's not yet known whether the whale was dead or alive when it collided with the ship. Fin whales are listed as threatened under the Species at Risk Act."We don't know a lot about fin whales. They're called the greyhounds of the sea because they're quick and they're usually just zipping by," said Paul Cottrell, Pacific marine mammal co-ordinator for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. "The necropsy will be extremely useful for research and education."Cottrell said the carcass has been taken to Sidney on the east coast of Vancouver Island for the necropsy and would likely be dropped into back into the sea within a week."Dead whale carcasses team with life on the continental shelf and beyond. They are really islands of life," Cottrell said. "They provide an ecosystem for a whole bunch of other animals."Two tugboats were required to move the whale because of its size. Cottrell said it was about 21 metres long, weighed about 70 tonnes, and was likely middle-aged. Fin whales usually grow to a maximum length of 24 to 27 metres. "The great expertise of divers under the water allowed us to remove the whale without a hitch," Cottrell said. Tourists watched as the whale was removed from the boat's bow. "It looks so small compared to the boat," said Ed McKeowan, 69, of Chicago."I think it's a shame but it's inevitable. Unfortunately we share the sea with the whales," said Ross Harlow, 70, of Whistler.Fin whales are not normally found in the straits between Vancouver Island and the B.C. mainland, so it's likely the ship struck the whale somewhere north of Vancouver Island, Lisa Spaven of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans said."Vessel strikes are a very real threat to fin whales," Spaven said, adding it is very difficult to put a number on how often whales die due to ship collisions since such incidents may go unreported.Princess Cruises said in a news release: "It is unknown how or when this could have happened, as we have strict whale avoidance procedures in place when our ships are in the vicinity of marine life."We take our responsibility to be good stewards of the marine environment very seriously, and have clear guidelines for our ships on how to operate if whales are sighted nearby, which include altering course and reducing speed as required."This is the second time in just over 10 years that a cruise vessel has come into the Port of Vancouver with a whale caught on the bow.In June of 1999, the Celebrity Cruise vessel MV Galaxy collided with an adult male fin whale, which likely happened as the ship transited Hecate Strait north of Vancouver Island.Vancouver Sun