Hundreds of stranded pilot whales recently turned up in New Zealand’s Golden Bay. Approximately 200 were discovered on Friday and unfortunately more than 20 of them passed away.

Hundreds of stranded pilot whales recently turned up in New Zealand’s Golden Bay. Approximately 200 were discovered on Friday and unfortunately more than 20 of them passed away.

Rescuers from Project Jonah and the New Zealand Department of Conservation rushed to the scene to help keep the surviving whales alive. Initially, crews had difficultly getting the whales out to deeper waters due to high tide and wind, but eventually they were reportedly able to get more than a hundred to refloat.

Whale standings have been reported before in Golden Bay but this particular one is the largest pod in at least the last decade. Last year, about 50 beached whales were found in the vicinity.

Just because the initial refloating efforts in the most recent instance have been successful thus far doesn't mean the work is o