A YOUNG minke whale has been discovered washed up dead on the rocks of a beach near Bude.

Harry Walton and his friend were enjoying a warm afternoon on the beach at Compass Point, when they came across the corpse of the washed up whale.

Harry said: “I was standing up by the cliffs, and me and my friend saw it down on the beach so we climbed down to have a look at it.”

At this point, a lady in the area had already reported the stranded whale to Cornwall Wildlife Trust’s Marine Strandings Network on July 13. The team were immediately able to confirm that the species of the dead mammal was a minke whale, and that the carcass was fresh enough for a post mortem to take place.

After photos and measurements of the whale were taken by a specially trained volunteer, the Network notified their partners at the Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme, as well as their vet pathologist James Barnett. A post mortem was then arranged the same day.

The minke whale was identified as a juvenile female, measuring 5.1m long with evidence of feeding recently.

Niki Clear, the data officer for the Marine Strandings Network, said: “External injuries and congested lungs confirm the whale had lived stranded on the rocks and died as a result.

“The PM team collected a number of samples from the animal which we’re hoping will shed some light as to why this young minke whale lived stranded, but this does take time.”

Cornwall Council advised people visiting the beach or the area to stay clear of the whale, for health and safety reasons. A spokesperson said: “We advise anyone wanting to see the whale to not go near it. Our team couldn’t get down there easily at all, and it wouldn’t be safe to bring the whale back up, so it has been left down there. If the tide changes, it might be possible for us to try and move the corpse then, but for now we have left it.

“We wouldn’t encourage people to go down there; you can see the whale clearly from the cliffs, so there is no need for people to endanger themselves by climbing down to look at it. We advise that people keep a safe distance away from it.”