The stranding of more than 40 false killer whales on a reef near Māhia Peninsula yesterday was the first stranding of the species in around 40 years.
The group had earlier come right into the shore at Taylor's Bay but had been saved by locals. After later stranding near the reef the whales and a bottlenose dolphin were euthanised.
One local Tiria Tumoana recounted the first stranding to 1News. Tumoana watched the whales fast approaching the Māhia coastline but their fascination quickly turned to concern after they realised the whales could become stuck.
"They were just driving themselves on the shore at full speed, it was really scary."
Onlookers rushed to the water to help.
"At first I was really scared but once everyone showed up everyone was in good spirits and we tried to get them back out as quick as we could. It was amazing."
The locals managed to turn them around and get pods of the killer whales moving out.
But later, the pod restranded nearby.
The new location was trickier to access, and by the time conservation staff got there, getting them back out to sea for a second time wasn't possible.
Gisborne Department of Conservation operations manager Matt Tong said the false killer whales stranded around the corner from Taylor's Beach.
"We found quite a desperate situation where most of the pod had restranded on quite a rugged reef and they were in a lot of distress. Some looked to have already passed away, and the others were injured and not in a good shape."
He said a few of the whales were already dead, and they were in a "huge amount of distress".
"In the end, we had to make the really difficult decision that euthanasia was the right call."
While whale strandings aren't uncommon, for this species it is extremely rare.
False Killer Whales NZ's Jochen Zaeschmar said it is the first stranding on the mainland in more than 40 years.
"We had one in the Chatham Islands in 2005, and that was the last we know of. So false killer whales in general are rare and strandings even rarer."
Scientists have been studying the pod today. Zaeschmar added: "False killer whales globally are a little known species and even in New Zealand we still don't know much".
The local iwi are taking the lead with the next steps.
Aaron Raureti from Ngāti Rongomaiwahine said: "Even though they've died, it's there for a reason, it's up to us to utilise what we've got. It's us being Māori."
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