Can anyone identify this (unfortunately dead) marine mammal?

[lumberjack_jeff]

Sorry I didn't get anything in the photo to gauge size, but it's about 26" long and probably weighs about 15#. No teeth. I'm guessing that it's an infant porpoise, but I don't know. :(

It was found south of Queets (about 1/4 mile north of the Raft River) on the Olympic Peninsula on Saturday.



This particular stretch of beach is about the last wild place on the US pacific coast.



The island in the distance is known as "tunnel island", for this reason;



Viewed from the south it has earned the name elephant rock.

[YOY]

1. Looks like a baby whale.

Some kind of baleen mouthed whale.

[mikelgb]

2. =( yeah looks like a baby dolphin or porpoise

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. Poor little thing. :^(

[targetpractice]

4. Vaquita (Phoncoena sinus)

They're endangered...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaquita

Upon edit: I think arcadian is correct that it's a harbor porpoise.

[arcadian]

10. Very similar

But it looks like the Vaquita's range is in the Gulf of California only. Same family though.

[arcadian]

5. Harbor porpoise

[targetpractice]

9. I think you're right...

I guessed Vaquita, because I was just reading about them... But, they are found on the Pacific coast of Mexico. I didn't pay attention to where this dead one was found.

[lumberjack_jeff]

20. I got an email reply from a biologist with the Olympic marine sanctuary. She agrees. n/t

[peekaloo]

6. I'd guess some sort of whale.

dolphins/porpoises have more of a snout.

and I could be wrong.

[arcadian]

8. they are all cetaceans

but this is definitely a toothed whale.

[peekaloo]

12. Thank you.

:-)

[arcadian]

13. Ooops, I should clarify.

Dolphins and porpoise are toothed whales.

[peekaloo]

15. so I'm both right and wrong?

;-)

but I'm a :dunce: for not making that connection.

[pkdu]

7. Looks very much like this other baby porpoise washed up on Alaskan beach

http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/wildlife/marine/story/184024.html

[lumberjack_jeff]

17. Yes, it looks almost just like that.

I found the absence of teeth confusing. I'm guessing porpoises acquire teeth with age.

[pkdu]

19. According to this , they are born toothless and remain so for a few months..

http://books.google.com/books?id=I3pedKLQzJMC&pg=PA26&lpg=PA26&dq=when+do+porpoise+grow+teeth&source=bl&ots=sCNrG73gav&sig=fszAAuVz7M4lItOlfQHvizOPl1o&hl=en&ei=b3lTSsLkCYWIsgO7r7j6Bg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5

[elehhhhna]

11. It's a fish.

[csziggy]

14. Fish do not have that horizontal tail fluke n/t

[imdjh]

16. It probably died of hypothermia

[lumberjack_jeff]

18. I prefer my beach.

:hi: