Straggler fails to rejoin whale pod

A straggler pilot whale left behind when 53 pilot whales and five dolphins returned
to Bass Strait on Monday has failed to rejoin the pod.
More than 150 people attempted to return a pod of nearly 200 pilot whales and seven
bottlenose dolphins to sea throughout Monday after they beached themselves on
Tasmania's King Island the night before.
The rescued whales were electronically tagged for tracking and there were no signs
on Tuesday of them returning to shore.
Parks and Wildlife manager Chris Arthur said attempts to return the straggler whale
to sea would resume on Wednesday after extreme weather conditions thwarted Tuesday's
effort.
The remaining pilot whale, which is in promising health, had been taken to a
sheltered area at the mouth of Naracoopa Creek to stay overnight, he said.
"At first light we will reassess the situation with regards to the weather and the
condition of the animal," he said.
Mr Arthur said that in total 53 pilot whales and five bottlenose dolphins had been
returned to sea, and 118 had died.