Could AI help save pilot whales from a stranding?

Warning: Some readers may find the video in this story upsetting.

The death of pilot whales in Wairarapa after a stranding this week is not a sight anyone wants to see repeated and one project has been utilising AI to help the cause.

About 50 pilot whales were found trapped amongst rocks of the Ngawi coastline on Thursday, and despite efforts, none survived.

Pilot Pulse is a project prompted by concerned locals in Mohua Golden Bay, an area that sees an almost annual occurrence of mass pilot whale strandings.

Daren Grover from whale rescue group Project Jonah told Saturday Mornings the project has been trying to hear and track whales through echolocations before they are found on the beach.

"These animals live in a world of sound.

"Traditionally, acoustic buoys and acoustic monitors were something that you would put out in the ocean, you would hit record and then go back three to six months later, take the buoy back in, and then someone would have to sit and listen to hundreds and hundreds of hours of recordings."

But AI has meant the signals could be received in an instant.

Grover said they were able to trial the technology last year with the goal of hearing the pilot whales.

"In a period from December last year through to May this year, we heard pilot whales twice... once on the day that there was a mass stranding, and we heard them once when there wasn't a mass stranding.

"So right now, we've gathered some data. It's not a lot of data, and we need to gather a lot more data before we can start to move forward with any future action."

Being able to get fast detection means response teams can mobilize in a high alert situation.

"We're looking at preparedness in one of the global stranding hotspots.

"The AI... it really has kind of turbocharged our ability to refine the notifications, and so when the buoy was launched last December on its first trial, we were getting notifications pretty much hourly."

Grover said this was different from preventing pilot whales from stranding in the first place as there was still an ethical debate to be had as to whether that should be done at all.

"We don't know why the pilot whales have stranded in the moment.

"We think about, well, let's stop them from stranding. And does that mean physical intervention? And any physical interaction they have with us is likely to cause stress."

Grover explained that heat stroke was the main cause of death for a stranded pilot whale, as they have a thick layer of blubber which helps them buoyancy.

But there is also the added stress of being surrounded by humans and separated from the rest of the pod.

Grover said the goal was now to get enough money and send a second buoy out to track the direction of the whales making the calls as they come through the bay.

In the meantime, he advised anyone who encounters a stranded whale to call for help and to pour water on the whale while helps cool them down as long as it's not near the blowhole.