Dead whale on New Jersey’s Long Beach Island is first of the year, stranding group says

By WAYNE PARRY
Associated Press

LONG BEACH TOWNSHIP, N.J. (AP) — A marine mammal rescue group says a dead humpback whale that has washed ashore on New Jersey’s Long Beach Island  was the first such death in the state this year. The Marine Mammal Stranding Center received a call at 6:45 a.m. Thursday reporting a dead humpback whale in the surf in Long Beach Township. It said the animal was 20 to 30 feet long, but did not release further information such as whether there were any outward signs of injury or illness. The center’s web site listed 14 whale deaths in New Jersey during 2023.