Two-Year-Old Bryde Whale Found Dead in Phetchaburi

The carcass of a two year old female Bryde's whale found dead in the Gulf of Thailand has been towed ashore in Phetchaburi’s Ban Laem district and being dissected to find the cause of death. According to the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) she was trapped in a net and there is no plastic in the stomach.

Bryde's whales (Balaenoptera edeni) are one of the rare marine species in Thai Waters and an iconic sea mammal of Thailand. According to the new Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act, B.E. 2562(2019) Bryde's whale has been listed as preserved wildlife among other iconic marine animals including Omura’s whale (Balaenoptera omurai), Leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) and whale shark. Bryde’s whales are distributed along the coastlines of the upper gulf of Thailand, listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). DMCR also reported in 2017 that there are 65 Bryde's whales in Thailand.