State warns of whale carcass pieces floating off the Kona Coast

State officials are warning the public of possible encounters with pieces of decomposing whale carcass off the Kona Coast.

The sperm whale carcass was first seen drifting along the Kona Coast on Tuesday, according to the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources. State officers, along with a trained responder, towed the carcass off shore Honokohau Harbor on Wednesday evening.

A large chunk of the carcass sank at a popular dive site off of Honokohau, according to DLNR’s Division of Aquatic Resources Protected Species Aquatic Biologist Jordan Lerma.

Smaller pieces, meanwhile, may have become dislodged and may be floating in the area, officials said, and sharks continue to be observed.

Sharks, however, are known to have a regular presence in the area.

DLNR said no sightings of whale carcass pieces have been reported in the area, so far, and that recent storms have made it difficult to predict where the remains might drift.

DLNR did not release the exact location where the carcass was first found, but said it was already in an advanced state of decomposition before it was towed on Wednesday.

State authorities are reminding people of the public health risks, as well as the laws and cultural protocols regarding whale carcasses.

“Decomposing whales can carry zoonotic diseases, which spread from animals to people,” said DLNR in a news release. “Storm systems passing over Hawaiʻi, wind, and strong currents could push pieces of the carcass back toward shore. The public is advised to stay out of the water near any pieces of whale carcass, and to not approach by boat, board or swimming.”

Any part of the whale, whether still attached to the carcass or on its own near the carcass site is protected under state and federal laws, DLNR said, and removing any body parts or bones from the carcass is illegal.

“Whales such as this palaoa (sperm whale) are considered Akua Kanaloa and therefore require the utmost reverence, even in these times of transition where they return to the Kanaloanuiakea,” said Roxy Keliʻikipikaneokolohaka, executive director of Kiaʻi Kanaloa, in a statement. “In these times, appropriate cultural behavior is expected which is to know your place in this realm of Kanaloa, to let nature, nature, and to not be mahaʻoi (disrespectfully intrusive) by diving near or through the remains and to leave all iwi (bones) and niho (teeth) alone.”

DLNR is monitoring the site in close coordination with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Kiaʻi Kanaloa.

Anyone who finds remains should report it to NOAA at 1-888-256-9840