Bay Area sees 18th gray whale death of 2025

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — A whale that washed up in San Francisco over the weekend was confirmed to be the 18th individual gray whale that scientists have found deceased in the Bay Area in 2025, according to The Marine Mammal Center.
The male gray whale was discovered Saturday at Lands End. A team led by the California Academy of Sciences attempted to reach the dead whale to perform a necropsy, but due to its location down a cliffside, it was inaccessible.
The cause of the death remains undetermined.
Four of the 18 gray whales scientists responded to this year in the Bay Area died from probable vessel strikes, TMMC said.
Bay Area gray whale strandings in 2025 as of June 10:
June 7 – Lands End, San Francisco – cause of death undetermined
May 31 – Montara State Beach, Montara – cause of death undetermined
May 29 – McNears Beach County Park, San Rafael – cause of death undetermined
May 29 – South San Francisco Bay, San Leandro – cause of death undetermined
May 28 – Alamere Falls, Point Reyes National Seashore – probable vessel strike
May 26 – Alcatraz, San Francisco – cause of death undetermined
May 26 – Point Bonita, Marin Headlands – cause of death undetermined
May 24 – Berkeley – cause of death undetermined
May 22 – Southeast Farallon Island – cause of death undetermined
May 21 – Bolinas – cause of death undetermined
May 12 – Rodeo – probable vessel strike
May 11 – Point Lobos, San Francisco – cause of death undetermined
May 8 – Martinez – cause of death undetermined
April 30 – Treasure Island – cause of death undetermined
April 17 – Alameda – cause of death undetermined
April 4 – Fort Point Rock Beach – probable vessel strike
April 2 – Angel Island State Park – probable vessel strike
March 30 – Black Sands Beach, San Francisco – cause of death undetermined
The number of individual dead gray whales stranded in the Bay Area this year has not been seen since the height of the NOAA-declared 'unusual mortality event' that devastated populations along the west coast between 2019 and 2023, according to experts.
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