Whale carcass washes ashore in Delaware

OCEAN CITY, Del., May 25 (UPI) -- A 41-foot sei whale that washed ashore dead in Delaware had a broken skull and jaw and likely was struck by a ship, wildlife officials said.

The young male, estimated to weigh 27.5 tons, washed up last week at Seashore State Park north of Ocean City, The Washington Post reported Monday.

A necropsy suggested the whale had been struck by a "very large ship," said Suzanne Thurman, executive director of the Marine Education Research and Rehabilitation Institute.

The whale's skull was saved for educational purposes while heavy equipment moved the rest of the carcass a short distance before burying it, Thurman said.

Sei whales migrate north along the edge of the continental shelf as summer approaches and waters warm, Thurman said.