Pod of 20 to 30 Pilot Whales Stranded in Remote Florida Everglades

When you think of the Florida Everglades, you usually think of alligators and snakes rather than whales. Yet it turns out that a pod of 20 to 30 pilot whales has been stranded in shallow water in a remote area of Everglades National Park, according to NBC6. Now, there are efforts in place to try to rescue these whales before they perish.

Pilot whales are larger members of the dolphin group. Reaching average lengths of 12 feet for females and 18 feet for males, these whales are known to travel in large groups and prefer warmer tropical and temperate waters. In this case, though, officials are still baffled as to how and why the whales managed to strand themselves in the Everglades.

The whales were first spotted on Tuesday at around 2 p.m. by a fisherman near Highland Beach, which is on the west side of Everglades National Park, according to 7News. Since then, officials have tried to assist them in any way they can.

"We found 20 to 30 whales in the water confused and about 10 that had beached themselves," said Linda Friar, Everglades National Park spokesperson, in an interview with 7News. "Three to four of those whales died and the other whales we were able to get back into the water."

In attempts to help the whales, planes have been temporarily diverted from the area in order to avoid spooking the marine mammals, according to MyFoxPhilly.

"Marine biologists will go out with the team today to figure out a way to steer them away from the beach," said Friar in an interview with 7News. "They think that they will get most of them to move on. It may take a few days."

This isn't the first time that pilot whales have beached themselves in South Florida, though. According to the Huffington Post, more than 20 came ashore near the Florida Keys in 2012. Hopefully, though, this incident will be a little less deadly than previous ones.