A dead whale was found on the beach in Kazivera on the western coast in the north on Thursday.

The whale was a juvenile, around 4.15 metres in length and weighing 1.5 tonnes, according to Taskent Doga Parki (Tashkent Nature Park), an environmental and wildlife nonprofit based on Kyrenia. It has been brought to the park for a necropsy.

“Every marine mammal that washes ashore” is “an important warning sent to us by the marine ecosystem,” the nonprofit wrote in a statement. It added that ship strikes, ghosts nets and underwater noise are some of many potential reasons for the death.

The nonprofit urged people who see marine mammals that have washed ashore to not “approach or interfere” and instead to alert “the appropriate authorities” so that an accurate cause of death can be determined and actions can be taken to prevent similar cases in the future.

“The health of our oceans is our shared responsibility,” the statement concluded. “Every loss serves as a reminder of just how urgent and important it is to protect nature.”

Though rare, this is not the first time a dead whale has been found in Cyprus recently.

A similar incident occurred in February when a dead whale was found a beach near the Famagusta district village of Akanthou.