Whale carcasses found in Alameda, Marin

The Marine Mammal Center confirmed reports Friday afternoon that a second whale carcass was found in the San Francisco Bay Area.

A gray whale carcass was found on Tennessee Valley Beach in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area in Marin County. The Marine Mammal Center said scientists were on the scene this afternoon to anchor the whale, take basic measurements and confirm the sex.

The whale is a 35-foot adult female gray whale. Scientists in San Francisco hope to conduct a more thorough necropsy Saturday, The Marine Mammal Center spokeswoman Laura Sherr said.

A fin whale carcass was found Friday morning in Alameda near Oakland’s Jack London Square. The whale was being towed late this afternoon to Angel Island State Park and a necropsy is scheduled for early next week based on weather conditions in San Francisco Bay, Sherr said.

The California Academy of Sciences will join scientists with The Marine Mammal Center for the necropsy.

According to The Marine Mammal Center, experts from Golden Gate Cetacean Research said fin whales have been seen locally in recent weeks. It’s estimated that 16,000 fin whales reside in the northern Pacific and 3,500 more reside along the West Coast of the United States.

The Marine Mammal Center said it responded to three other dead whales this year and the leading causes of death include blunt force trauma from ship strikes, malnutrition, trauma and entanglements.