Marine protection volunteers and officials from the Marine and Coastal Resources Department rescued five pygmy killer whales today, which had become trapped in a shallow mangrove swamp in Phuket.
According to a report from Pinsak Suraswadi, director-general of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources, a pod of six pygmy killer whales were spotted near the Kung Bay mangrove forest and became trapped in shallow water as they were foraging for food.
Officials said that three of them were found to be in good health, while two others appeared weak. The sixth died of suffocation after becoming entangled in mangrove roots.
The five surviving whales were transported by boat to Yao Yai Island for medical care, before being released back into the sea.
Department officials said that this is the fourth time that pygmy killer whales have been spotted in Thai waters – once in the Gulf and the rest in the Andaman Sea.
