International Fund for Animal Welfare scientists have not been able to determine a cause of death for this 57-foot endangered finback or fin whale discovered on Jan. 4 at Jeremy Point in Wellfleet. A necropsy found no obvious signs of trauma, such as a ship strike or entanglement with fishing gear, according to IFAW’s Stacey Hedman. But Center for Coastal Studies staff have identified the whale as a regular visitor to these waters since 1980, making him about 40 years old, which is “middle-age for a fin,” Hedman said. The whale had last been seen in 2019 and was known to swim with another fin whale who was found dead in Provincetown in 2018, Hedman said. (Photo courtesy IFAW/NOAA permit #18786-06)
