Whale found in Amazon Jungle: A mystery unveiled

The carcass of a 36-foot humpback, weighing 10 tonnes, was found far from its natural habitat on Marajo Island, at the mouth of the Amazon River, specifically at Araruna Beach. The creature, located 50 feet from the sea, perplexed observers.

Various theories attempt to explain the whale's journey into the jungle. Scientists speculate that rough seas might have propelled the whale inland, away from the water. However, the circumstances of its demise remain unclear.

Specialists dispatched by the NGO Bicho D'Agua Institute visited the site to investigate. They estimated the whale to be a 12-month-old calf but struggled to determine the cause of death. The team posited that the whale may have become entangled in the mangroves after being cast ashore.

Others, like the Maritime Herald newspaper, suggested that the whale succumbed to ingesting ocean plastics.

Dirlene Silva of SEMMA, the Brazilian environmental, health, and sanitation department, noted, "We only discovered the whale due to scavenging birds circling above the hidden carcass, some distance from the sea."

Renata Emin, president of Bicho D'Agua and a marine specialist, speculated, "It's unclear how it arrived here, but it's possible the tide carried it inland amidst the mangroves. The presence of a humpback whale on Brazil's north coast in February is highly unusual."

This anomaly puzzled the team, as humpback whales typically inhabit the Bahia area from August to November before migrating to Antarctica. Emin added, "Humpback whales rarely venture this far north. Although we recorded one in the area three years ago, such sightings are rare. We suspect this calf may have become separated from its mother during the migratory cycle between continents."