This article is from page 13 of the 2012-04-10 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 13 JPG
THE mystery of the Arctic Narwhal, who somehow made his way to the coast of County Clare, looks set to remain a mystery after the remains of the stranded mammal were destroyed last week.
A carcass, believed to be that of a Narwhal, was spotted by a member of the public at Clahane near Liscannor on March 25. The Narwhal, which is easily recognisable because of its single, two-metre-long, ivory tusk, is a cold-loving Arctic mammal and rarely ventures further south than sections of Greenland.
Indeed, had the carcass been confirmed as a Narwhal, it would have been the first documented finding of a Narwhal in Ireland.
On hearing of the carcass, the Kilrush-based Irish Whale and Dolphin Group set about confirming the find, but could not locate the animals carcass.
The Narwhal hunt came to an end last Wednesday, when Clare County Council confirmed that they had removed the animal carcass.
In a statement the local authority confirmed that the partial remains of the decomposing mammal were discovered by a member of the pub- lic on a beach near Liscannor and reported to the Ennistymon Area Office on March 27.
“An investigation was immediately carried out by council officials who determined that the mammal had been in situ for at least several weeks. The mammal was found to be in an advanced state of decomposition and, as a result, the identity of the species could not be determined,” said the statement.
“Due to the serious public health concerns surrounding the presence of a rotting carcass in a public amenity area, Clare County Council engaged the services of an animal disposal contractor, licensed by the Department of Agriculture under EU legislation, to remove the carcass.
“The contractor took the decision to immediately render the carcass, due to its advanced decomposed state.”
The Environment section of Clare County Council also noted that they had not been contacted by the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group regarding the matter.
The waters on the Irish Atlantic coast have seen some unusual activity in recent months with a large increase in unexplained whale beachings and the unexplained deaths of a numbers of dolphins.