Drone footage showed the whales clustering and forming into a heart shape before stranding themselves on the beach.
A desperate effort is underway to save a pilot of whales after a mass stranding in Western Australia.
Reece Whitby, Western Australia's environment minister, said it was particularly frustrating because it's not known why the phenomenon occurs."What we're seeing is utterly heartbreaking and distressing," he told reporters. "It's just a terrible, terrible tragedy to see these dead pilot whales on the beach."
Hundreds of volunteers also offered to help — so many that officials said they had enough registered volunteers and urged other members of the public to stay away from the beach. Macquarie University wildlife scientist Vanessa Pirotta said the drone footage could suggest the whales had become disoriented, although she said the exact reasons for mass strandings remain unclear.
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