A 29m long blue whale carcass was found stranded in Kupang Bay, Indonesia on Tuesday (July 21).

The dead whale, which weighs about 100 tonnes, was found by fisherman on Na Batu Kepala Beach in Nunhila subdistrict, reported The Jakarta Post.

Thousands flock to the beach to see the whale

Deemed the largest animal on Earth, the blue whale carcass became a spectacular sight for the residents of Kupang city, with thousands of residents visiting the whale.

According to this tweet by Twitter user @majjeee_, crowds are seen flocking to the site to catch a glimpse of the whale carcass.

Here's a translation of the tweet:

Yesterday at Nunhila-Kupang beach, there was a beached 29-metre long whale. It was the talk of the whole town. This was the conversation between my friend and I:

Me: The beached whale is a bluewhale, right?

Him: Yes, like the one I saw in Gorontalo is a whaleshark. Whale shark.

Me: So is it a whale or a shark?

Jd kmrn, d Pantai Nunhila-Kupang ada paus 29 meter trdampar. Skota gempar deh. Trus gw sm tmn gw b like:
👩🏻‍⚕️: “Paus yg trdampar paus biru, bluewhale kan itu?”
🧔🏻: “Iya, yg kyk gw liat di Gorontalo, eh itu whaleshark deh! Hiu paus”
👩🏻‍⚕️: “jadi dia hiu atau paus?”
🧔🏻: “... jayus nyet” pic.twitter.com/Y3KsBmqgZg

— j e — (@majeee__) July 22, 2020

Some footage of the blue whale emerged on Twitter, such as these from Beta Abdullah:

Here are people for scale next to the ginormous whale:

Carcass will be studied to understand the species

The head of Kupang Water Conservation Area Agency (BKKPN), Ikram Sangadji, told The Jakarta Post that the agency "responded quickly to reports from residents regarding the marine mammal stranded at the beach".

Fisherman first spotted the dead whale at around 10am in Kupang, and the carcass was later moved by the tide onto the beach at 3pm.

To preserve the skeleton of the blue whale, the dead whale will be buried at the sandy beach and the bones will be dug up on a later date.

Ikram told The Jakarta Post that the species is protected:

“The blue whale is a protected animal. Therefore, [...] preservation of its specimens will provide accurate evidence of the existence of the organism in a location.”

The preservation of the whale will also serve as a tool for education and allow for research into the animal's behaviour, habitat and anatomy.

The waters around Kupang are under the Sawu Sea National Marine Park and is used as a crossover area for cetaceans, such as dolphins and whales, reported The Jakarta Post.

Earlier this year, a dead sperm whale was found stranded among mangrove trees on Tasilo Beach.

According to Ikram from BKKPN, the marine park has seen eight species of dolphins and eight species of whales in their waters.

Threats to whales & other marine animals

There are many threats to whales and marine animals that wash up on shores across the globe, from plastic to being struck by boats.

In 2018, a sperm whale carcass that washed up on Kapota Island in Indonesia had six kilograms of plastic in its stomach, reported BBC.

Some of plastic items that were found included flip flops and plastic bags.

In 2015, another sperm whale carcass was found floating off Jurong Island and was found to have plastic cups in the stomach of the whale.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the United States, other threats blue whales face include being struck by vessels, such as boats, and getting entangled in fishing gear, such as nets.

Top screenshot via Indah Yudhana/Twitter