A whole pod of 77 whales have died in a mass stranding on a Scottish island.
British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) received a report of a mass stranding of up to 100 long-finned pilot whales in Sanday, Orkney, just before 11am on Thursday.
Of the 77 whales which were on the beach, none have survived after medics were mobilised from around the islands and further afield in Scotland in a bid to save them.
A similar incident occurred on July 16 2023 in the Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides, when 55 pilot whales were stranded, with only one surviving.
Molly Brown, who works for BDMLR, said although the cause of the stranding was unknown, the whales are sociable and may have followed one of the group who became stranded.
Brown said: “Pilot whales are incredibly sociable and so its possible that one of them stranded and the rest followed.
“It’s the largest one in a long time. We did have a mass stranding of 55 around this time last year on the Isle of Lewis.
“It’s a different part of Scotland – I don’t know if it’s just coincidence. There’s a lot of disturbance.”
Scottish Marine Animal Strandings Scheme intend to begin post-mortem investigations.
