'It was traumatic': Beached juvenile sperm whale dies in southern St. Lucie County

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ST. LUCIE COUNTY — A 25-foot-long sperm whale beached itself Saturday morning on Herman's Bay Beach in southern St. Lucie County and died, according to a bystander. 

"I sat there for two hours and watched it die," said Cristina Maldonado of Stuart, who was conducting a beach cleanup when she was among the early morning beach visitors to come across the whale. "It was traumatic."

The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration and Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute responded to Herman's Bay that morning. Harbor Branch referred requests for comment to NOAA, but officials there did not return calls Saturday.

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Maldonado said she was told the whale was a juvenile that previously had beached itself further north on the beach, but had been pushed back into the water by beachgoers. 

Maldonado said the whale had a rope looped around its lower jaw.

"It looked emaciated," she said. 

Herman's Bay is off State Road A1A, just north of the Martin County line. 

A juvenile sperm whale lies just off Herman's Bay Beach in St. Lucie County early Saturday morning, where it died after a few hours.

 (Photo: CONTRIBUTED PHOTO BY CRISTINA MALDONADO)

According to oceanwide-expeditions.com, sperm whales will usually eat a little over 900 kilograms of food (about 2,000 pounds) a day. To find their prey, preferably giant squid, they usually dive somewhere between 300 and 1,200 meters (roughly 1,000 to 4,000 feet) and an average dive lasts about an hour.

The adult males are the only members of the sperm whale family that venture into the colder waters approaching the north and south poles. The pods of females and young remain in tropical and temperate zones.

Sperm whales have a life span similar to humans, living about 70 years. Males do not reach their full size until they’re about 50 years old.

Lamaur Stancil is the Treasure Coast regional economy reporter covering business and industries, including retail, tourism and hospitality. Contact him at 321-987-7179 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and follow him at Lamaur Stancil on Facebook and @TCPalmLStancil on Twitter.

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