A Canadian town listed a dead 40ft sperm whale for sale on eBay after it washed up on the shores of Cape St George
A dead sperm whale was listed for sale on eBay after it washed up on the shores of a Canadian town last week.
The 40ft mammal was listed on the online marketplace after the town of Cape St George was told it was their responsibility to dispose of the carcass.
However, the advert was swiftly removed from the site, which outlaws the selling of animals.
“I received a call from the federal department of the environment saying
that you’re not allowed to sell any parts of sperm whales, even if
they’re dead,” said Cape St George mayor Peter Fenwick.
“They’ve got to sort it out somehow. The uncertainty means it just sort of sits there and rots,” Mr Fenwick told the National Post.
“I don’t know if you’ve ever seen a whale that’s been rotting on the
beach for a couple of months – actually sometimes you can’t see it for
the clouds of flies around it – but you can smell it for about a mile.”
Bids as high as $2,000 had reportedly been placed on the mammal by the time the advert was taken down.
Mr Fenwick said they had previously attempted to move the carcass with a 50ft vessel but it wasn’t strong enough and they can’t afford any other method of disposing of it.
The city is now offering to give the whale away for free to anyone who wants to take the responsibility of removing it.
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