VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — We're now learning more about two young humpback whales who were recently found dead in Virginia Beach.
About a week ago, two dead whales were spotted in the Resort City: one washed up at the Oceanfront and the other was stranded at False Cape State Park.
Since then, the Virginia Aquarium performed necropsies - or animal autopsies - on the two whales. The necropsies showed that the whales were both immature males, the aquarium says.
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A team is still working on determining how the whales died, but they did learn some concerning information after examining the whales, the aquarium says.
Both whales had healed scars from previous entanglements, the aquarium says. Entanglements happen when marine animals get tangled in objects like fishing gear, rope and trash, according to NOAA.
The aquarium says entanglements are a sub-lethal, chronic part of whales' lives, and our actions can adversely impact marine life.
"The entanglement scars are an important reminder that we share the ocean, and our activities can impact the ocean environment and its inhabitants," the aquarium said.
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Both whales also had abnormal skin lesions, the aquarium says. Its team is looking into the cause of the lesions.
The necropsies also revealed that the whale that was found at the Oceanfront was 32-feet-long and weighed about 32,000 punds, and the other was 27-feet-long and weighed about 21,800 pounds, the aquarium says. The animals are now buried, the aquarium added.
The aquarium says they took tissue samples from both whales, which will be used when determining the cause of death.
Stay with News 3 for updates.
