A gray whale washed ashore Wednesday at Virgin Creek Beach in Fort Bragg, drawing scientists and researchers from local and out-of-town organizations.
By Thursday, visitors gathered at the site after news spread on social media. Samples of the whale had already been taken by researchers from Fort Bragg’s Noyo Center for Marine Science. A volunteer identified it as a subadult female, meaning it had not yet reached breeding age.
The volunteer said gray whales have been stranding in higher numbers along the West Coast in recent months, and researchers are working to determine the cause.
Around 3 p.m. Thursday, scientists from the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco and the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito arrived to conduct a necropsy, or animal autopsy, to determine the cause of death.
An informational display has been set up at the site.