A dead female sub adult/adult Minke Whale 6.4m long was washed up at Cromer this lunchtime. She has probably been dead one to two weeks. Many thanks to Simon and Bob for the phone calls. This is probably one of the ‘Humpbacks’ reported by fishermen off Cromer. Given the dorsal fin damage and the way the upper jaw seems to be cleanly cut I would suggest this animal suffered a propeller strike; although it is hard to be sure. I took a DNA sample for the natural History Museum as they wont be recovering the corpse for necropsy. If the tide doesn’t take her back first the local authorities will do their stuff and remove her from the beach.
Letter From Norfolk 