MONMOUTH COUNTY — The whale that washed up on shore in Allenhurst recently was the first whale found shot along the New Jersey coast that anyone can remember, officials said.

Bob Schoelkopf said that during his 33 years as founding director of the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine, “No other bullet has been found in a whale in New Jersey.”

Schoelkopf said it was uncertain where the shooting occurred, adding that it was probably far from New Jersey.

The whale was shot in the jaw, causing a “massive infection” that made it unable to eat, he said.

“It literally died of starvation. It probably traveled quite a distance before it became so weak that it washed ashore,” Schoelkopf said.

The mammal center discovered the whale and reported it to the Office of Law Enforcement at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Wall.

Scott Doyle, an assistant special agent for NOAA, said the Wall office generally investigates "two or three" shootings of dolphins and seals each year, but this is the first time he can remember a whale being shot in his 25 years on the job.

NOAA is hoping that "someone with a conscience" who witnessed the shooting from a boat will come forward with information about the incident, Doyle said.

The male, short-finned pilot whale was founded stranded in Allenhurst on Sept. 24, said Lesli Bales-Sherrod, a spokeswoman for NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement. The whale, which was 10 feet long and weighed more than 700 pounds, was estimated to be a juvenile, she said.

A necropsy performed at the University of Pennsylvania found the bullet lodged in the whale’s jaw, Schoelkopf said.

The bullet was sent for ballistics testing at a federal lab in Seattle, Doyle said. He said officials do not know yet whether the weapon used was a rifle or handgun.

Officials also have no idea if the shooter was on a commercial vessel or a recreational boat, but they said there is likely a witness because there is usually more than one person on these vessels, Doyle said.

Whales and other marine mammals such as seals and dolphins are protected under the 1972 Marine Mammal Protection Act, which prohibits them from being “harassed, hunted, captured, killed or collected.” Violations can result in penalties of up to $100,000 and imprisonment for up to a year.

Doyle said many fishermen carry guns on boats, particularly shark fishermen.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call (732) 280-6490.

Previous coverage:

• Whale that washed up on N.J. beach had been shot, officials say



