Whale's body recovered after four days on beach

The body of a whale has been recovered more than four days after washing up on a beach.

The 4.8m (15.7 ft) cetacean is the largest of six to have died when 40 pilot whales were seen "distressed" off the Northumberland coast in September, British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) said.

Its body was near Hadston Rocks in Amble and was first reported to the coastguard and Northumberland County Council on Monday, the day after it had beached.

Dogwalker David Potts came across it on Wednesday morning and said: "It was quite a size, it was huge."

He said: "I thought it had just washed up, it looked quite fresh."

Northumberland County Council, which had asked members of the public to keep a safe distance from the animal and ensure dogs were kept on leads, confirmed the body was removed on Friday.

As whales are considered royal fish, the Receiver of Wreck was also notified of its beaching on Monday.

The Receiver said removing whales requires specialised equipment due to their size and it often takes more time to complete.

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