Beached Whale Discovered In South Iceland

UPDATE: It has come to light that the whale in question is a fin whale; not a sei whale, as previously reported.

A beached fin whale was discovered near Þorlákshöfn yesterday. Going by the photos posted to Facebook by Grétar Ingi Erlendsson, it does not appear to have been dead for very long.

Be in with the chance of winning a box of Icelandic candy—and a piece of Geldingadalsgos lava—by signing up for our newsletter here before 1500 Icelandic time on Friday 29th October.

It is as yet unknown what caused this whale to beach in Iceland, but beached whales of any species are far from uncommon in Iceland.

“The size of the baleen whale in Skötubótinn just outside Þorlákshöfn,” Grétar writes in his Facebook post. “If I’ve googled correctly, this is a sei whale. Sandra Björk has the honour of having found the remains. Although it’s always sad in some way, there’s no denying that it’s a magnificent sight!”

You can check out the full gallery here, or embedded below: