PHUKET: A large dead whale was found floating in a bay off the Koh Racha shore in tambon Rawai of Muang district on Saturday.
The decomposing carcass was found by local residents in Laem Sai bay, in the south of Koh Racha.
Sarit Chandee, of the network for marine resources conservation of Koh Racha Yai, reported the discovery to the Phuket fisheries office.
The Phuket Marine Biological Centre of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources on Sunday sent experts by boat to Laem Sai bay to examine it.
The carcass was towed to Phuket island. It was about 17 metres long and weighed an estimated 3 tonnes and was believed to have been dead three or four weeks.
It was being examined by veterinarians at the Sireetarn Marine Endangered Animals Rescue Centre in Phuket, to find the cause of death and identify the species.