Almost 200 Whales Beached In Australia

SYDNEY — Nearly 200 whales and several dolphins are stranded on a beach in the southern Australian island state of Tasmania, the latest in a string of beachings in recent months.

Rescuers were headed Monday to Naracoopa Beach on Tasmania’s King Island to try to save some of the 194 pilot whales and six or seven bottlenose dolphins that began beaching themselves on Sunday evening.

Some had died by Monday morning, said Chris Arthur from Tasmania’s Parks and Wildlife Service.

“While there are animals alive, there is always hope,” Arthur said.

It was not clear why the animals had beached on the island, halfway between Tasmania and mainland Australia. The Examiner, a Tasmanian newspaper, reported that the animals were caught by a very low tide.