A dead porpoise found washed ashore on the beach at the Esquimalt Lagoon appears to have suffered an attack or strike.
The marine mammal, which appears to be a Dall’s porpoise given its distinctive black body and white patch on its tail end, was discovered by beachgoers Wednesday morning at the lagoon, in Colwood.
It suffered a long gash on its bottom side, as well as a wound near its head, indicating the porpoise possibly fell prey to a predator or a vessel.
Its remains attracted onlookers at the Esquimalt Lagoon, including parent Whittney Ambeault.
“It was just a great opportunity to check out an animal that we otherwise wouldn’t get to see up close, and an opportunity just to talk about life cycles and the ocean life that we have right here in our backyard,” she told CHEK News.
Dall’s porpoises are primarily found in the northern Pacific Ocean, with many sightings reported around the southeast and northeast coasts of Vancouver Island, according to the B.C. Cetacean Sightings Network.
Known as the fastest cetaceans in British Columbia, reaching speeds of up to 55 kilometres an hour, they are not considered an at-risk species by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada.
CHEK News has reached out to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans for more information on the animal’s death.
CHEK News
