RAYMOND—A juvenile gray whale that strayed about 20 miles up the freshwater Willapa River in southwest Washington was found dead Saturday, April 4, officials with Cascadia Research Collective announced.
The young whale, nicknamed “Willapa Willy” by locals, was first spotted Wednesday, April 1, in the North Fork of the Willapa River near Raymond in Pacific County. It had entered the river from Willapa Bay near Bruceport and swam inland along U.S. Highway 101, passing through South Bend and Raymond before reaching a narrower stretch near the Camp 1 Road Bridge.
Juvenile gray whales sometimes stray into rivers and bays during migration, possibly due to disorientation or searching for food.
The whale was thin but appeared active and uninjured when first observed, according to the Cascadia Research Collective, a nonprofit that monitors marine mammals. Biologists from the group, along with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, NOAA Fisheries and members of the Chinook Indian Nation and Shoalwater Bay Tribe, monitored the animal.
On Friday, April 3, search teams combed miles of the river but found no sign of the whale, which had apparently evaded detection earlier that day.
On Saturday, a drone photographer located the whale’s body in a shallow, rippled section of the river near Raymond around 1 p.m. Cascadia Research Collective confirmed the death later that day.
The exact cause of death has not been determined but prolonged exposure to freshwater can stress marine mammals, potentially causing health issues. Cascadia Research Collective hopes to examine the carcass.
Gray whales migrate along the Pacific coast each spring, with an estimated 20,000 passing Washington waters. The death of Willapa Willy comes amid a string of recent gray whale deaths along the Washington coast, including two found on a beach near Ocean Shores earlier in the week.
The Chinook Indian Nation is preparing a private ceremony, and officials are working with federal agencies on permits that would allow the tribe to harvest the carcass in keeping with traditional practices, a spokesperson said.
Author: Mario Lotmore
