NOAA says dead gray whale in Cook Inlet is likely the one stranded near Portage

A large gray whale found dead in west Cook Inlet this month is likely the same whale that was stranded in Twentymile River near Portage for several days starting in late May, NOAA Fisheries said in a statement Tuesday.

On June 12, the agency received a report that a dead gray whale had been spotted from the air at the mouth of the Theodore River, west of the Susitna River, according to the federal agency.

Because of challenging currents and tides in Turnagain Arm, it’s improbable that two gray whales could become stranded in upper Cook Inlet during the same time period, so it is likely the same whale that appeared in Twentymile River, fisheries biologist Barbara Mahoney said in the statement.

“We hoped for the best, but expected the worst given the poor condition of the gray whale when it left the Twentymile River,” Mahoney said.

[Stranded gray whale finally swims out of river into Turnagain Arm during high tide]

The gray whale that died was male, according to NOAA Fisheries.

The gray whale was spotted in Twentymile River near Girdwood when its stranding was first reported on Memorial Day, and it stayed in the river for over a week before swimming back into Turnagain Arm, according to the agency. But the whale “never made it down Cook Inlet back to the Gulf of Alaska,” NOAA Fisheries said.

So far this year, 12 gray whales have died in Alaska, according to NOAA Fisheries.

[Because of a high volume of comments requiring moderation, we are temporarily disabling comments on many of our articles so editors can focus on the coronavirus crisis and other coverage. We invite you to write a letter to the editor or reach out directly if you’d like to communicate with us about a particular article. Thanks.]