A dead humpback whale that washed up on a Sunshine Coast beach has been tested for H5 bird flu.
Sunshine Coast Council responded to a report from the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service of a dead whale floating between Point Cartwright and Mudjimba around 4pm yesterday.
By 5pm yesterday the juvenile whale had drifted to the northern end of Mooloolaba and quick moving tides meant it washed onto the beach at Alexandra Headland before boat crews could intervene.
Council environment teams set up an exclusion zone at the beach to ensure public safety.
The whale was removed just before 6am today and towed 20 nautical miles out to sea.
It’s not known how it died.
Council crews collected samples and measurements which they will submit to the authorities for research purposes along with a strandings report.
A GPS tracker was fitted to the whale to monitor its movements, allowing authorities to intervene early should it drift back towards the coast.
Data collected will support the future management of carcasses.
