Background
Originally, I had no information on this case. However, within days, this case file quickly became the #1 downloaded case file… getting more than 8,000 downloads in just the first couple of days it was online.
After a day or so, the actual photographer wrote to me to clear up some of the information being touted by the media. Shockingly… they were disseminating the WRONG story about what really happened.
Below, is an email interview I did with the actual photographer… who gave some more details and cleared up a few things. This was our exchange (No corrections have been made.)
These are the words of Emadaldin Pichgah, the original photographer:
Can you explain in detail how you were made aware of this creature?
At 1030 (lt) – 11.07.2013 when our vessel was standby in Persian Gulf (South Pars Area) one of my friends, Capt. M. Nikkhah made contact with me by radio and inform me that they discovered the huge unknown Carcass that floated in water in their position. So i proceed toward their location and try to approached to this creature. the point was that the horrible smell spread as much as all crew sense that from approximately 200 m (may e more) from the carcass. when we approached to carcass we shot some photos and also inform the position and course and speed of carcass drift to the nearest Drilling Rig this Carcass at that moment drifted in 120 degrees – 1 knt speed. Also the length of this Carcass was approximately between 33 to 39 ft. After 1 hour we left area because of horrible smell.
I am chief officer with around 6 years experience and during this sea time i have never seen some thing like that. How ever i’ve never work in Fishing vessels, because Fishing vessels crew are more experienced about these cases.
What did your shipmates think?
Unfortunately every one had his own opinion. Octopus! Huge Shark or desperate whale! but no body couldn’t prepare any evidence or strong reasons.
Why was this originally said to be captured by the Iranian Navy? Did you release the story, or did the media steal the photos from your page?
Honestly, i don’t know! I am working in Supply Boat in Offshore Field. If you notice to photos you can realized that the type of vessel in frame is Supply Boat not a War Ship. First time i sent photos to tabnak.ir –
just to ask the website visitors to discover the nature of this creature but in flash of light the photos spread in media and social networks. so i blame no body to stole this photo from my page but except tabnak.ir and mamnak.com nobody mentioned the source of these photos and just copy that.
Have you ever seen a dead whale carcass in the sea? Did it look like this?
Alive Whale yes, even one time we touch accidentally with one of them but dead whale no.
What do you think this is?
My knowledge about the sea mammals and animals in general is poor so i have no idea about this Carcass. Also regarding the type of tidal current in Persian Gulf its a little hard to believe some things drift from Ocean into the Persian Gulf near the Qatar beach.
My special thanks to Emadaldin Pichgah for the interview, and allowing us all access to the original, raw and high resolution photographs. They are available for download below.
High Resolution Photos
7/26/13, 6:30PM:
The following was published by the Huffington Post shortly after the photos began circulating.
| Persian Gulf Whale Carcass Reportedly Found By Iranian Navy No, it’s not a publicity stunt for the Middle East opening of “Pacific Rim.” That’s a big, reportedly stinky carcass discovered by the Iranian navy on July 11.Photos of the gnarly carcass were posted to a website serving the city of Bushehr in western Iran on the Persian Gulf. Based on the vertebrae and blackened skin of the carcass, Reddit users postulated that it was the remains of a whale.”The blackened skin and vertebrae are a good giveaway, I wish the pictures were a bit bigger so I could wager a guess at what kind it was, but it’s hard to make out!” wrote user Unidan, who is regarded as an expert in biology by members of the social news community.The Huffington Post reached out to Dr. Gary Griggs, director of the Institute of Marine Sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz, for a second opinion about the floating carcass.”From my vast knowledge and experience with whales and their skeletons, it is clearly a whale,” Dr. Griggs wrote in an email to HuffPost. “Although with the condition of the body, [it’s] difficult for me to determine what kind of whale.”Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/25/persian-gulf-whale-carcass-iranian-navy-photos_n_3653291.html |
Update 8/12/2013 from The Black Vault: Thanks to the more than 10,000 people that have visited this case file as the time of this update, another discovery made in 2011, also noted as a mysterious and unidentified carcass, washed up from the sea onto shore. Photos of this look nearly identical to whatever this creature was.
Here is the original news story, dated March 24, 2011, from the Nassau Guardian news site.
| Large, mysterious carcass washes up on Bahamas shore
By Krystel Rolle Guardian Staff Reporter NASSAU, Bahamas — A large creature, suspected by some people to be the carcass of a decomposed whale, was discovered on a Bahamas beach by fishermen last week. The finding has created widespread wonder on Acklins island and has caught international attention. Pictures of the carcass were featured on CNN.com IReport and were shared by more than 1,000 people on Facebook. “When I saw it, I said ‘well God have mercy,’” said Acklins Island Administrator Gregory Knowles. “The head is off and the tail is off. So it seems like it’s been out there in the sea for quite some time and then you have the sharks. They probably ate the head and basically all of the tail. “I was really moved by the size especially and then I was wondering how it got there.” It’s a question that has been asked by many who have viewed the mammoth creature, the administrator said. Knowles said he is unsure when the carcass washed on the shores of Spar Creek as that side of the island is cut off from the populated areas. “Where that washed up on shore, it’s in the southern part in Acklins and really no one lives in that area. So that was noticed by the fishermen who were in their boats traveling that area,” he said. “To get to it you need a boat or you have to walk at least a mile on a tract road and walk the bay.” Knowles said the fishermen discovered the creature last Wednesday. “It’s about 50 feet. Man you should see the size of it,” he said. Knowles said he believes that the creature weighs at least 1,000 tons. In order to move it, the government may have to bring in a crane or possibly a barge, Knowles added. The administrator said, when the cleanup efforts begin, there will be a lot of work to do as the stomach of the animal has exploded, probably due to prolonged sun exposure. “So the guts are out because the stomach burst open,” he said. Asked what he believes the creature is, Knowles said he could not be sure. “It is suspected that it could be a humpback whale from the looks of the fins, but I can’t be certain,” he said. However, Executive Director of the Bahamas National Trust Eric Carey is certain that the creature is not a whale. “It’s obviously not a whale. It appears to be some sort of marine animal,” he told The Guardian. He said his office is trying to reach the Bahamas Marine Mammal Research Organization to have it investigate. Knowles said his office has notified the Department of Marine Resources. He said an expert is expected to visit the island to study the creature.
Special thanks and source: http://www.thenassauguardian.com |
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This post was published on March 4, 2015