Eight-Metre Whale Shark Dies After Stranding on Banten Beach

An eight-metre whale shark stranded at Tenjolaya Beach in Lebak district, Banten, Indonesia, on Friday.

Local residents found it alive at about 7 a.m., but its condition worsened while it remained on the shore.

Rescue teams could not return it to the sea, in part because of its size and the limited equipment available.

The shark, a protected marine animal, died around midday; one account put the time at about 1 p.m.

Workers used an excavator to move and bury its body about 30 metres from where it was found.

The cause of the stranding is unknown, though it may have been carried by currents while following prey.