Whale Suffering From Extreme Scoliosis Spotted Off the Coast Of Spain

We often hear about people who are struggling with scoliosis, a sideways curvature of the spine. However, it’s also something that can affect animals – including whales!

A whale off the coast of Spain was recently spotted with a severe form of scoliosis. In fact, it was so bad that a well-meaning bystander called the Oceanographic Foundation and National Guard for help, believing the whale was trapped in a net.

The foundation shared about the 40-ton whale on Facebook, explaining that they responded to the scene believing they were going to help a whale entangled in a drift net.

The whale was swimming near Cullera Beach, but it wasn’t actually entangled. Instead, it appeared to have a sharp curve to its spine, creating a unique and distressing appearance.

Biologists and veterinarians confirmed that the animal wasn’t trapped, and instead was suffering from a serious spinal deviation; “a scoliosis of unknown origin that altered his natural anatomy.”

The foundation wrote in its Facebook post (translated): “Due to the magnitude of the whale, being in the open sea and its malformation, it was not possible to place a remote tracker on it to obtain more detailed data on its condition, its biology and its trajectory.”

They’re hoping that if the whale is sighted again, they’ll be able to observe it better and perhaps fit it with a tracker.

You can see the whale for yourself in the video below: