Rare Whale Found Dead on Beach, Ship Suspected

The whale is dead. The ship is still at large.

An endangered fin whale was found dead on a remote Marin County beach with injuries consistent with a ship collision, according to the Marin Independent Journal.

The 47-foot juvenile male suffered "extensive" injuries to the spine, rib, and other body parts, the newspaper reported. Scientists say it was positively hit by a ship.

"The spine of this whale was completely fractured as a result of a ship strike and it is very sad that this animal's life came to an end in this manner," Dr. Frances Gulland, a senior scientist at the Marine Mammal Center in the Marin Headlands, told the newspaper.

Another fin whale washed up dead on San Francisco's Ocean Beach in 2010, the newspaper reported.

Fin whales are the second-largest mammals on Earth, behind only the blue whale, the newspaper reported.

There are about 2,000 fin whales in the ocean from Washington to California.

Live fin whales were last seen in the area in 2004.