Recent whale strandings highlight the mystery that still baffles marine scientists

On New Zealand's remote Chatham Islands, over 500 pilot whales died when they got stranded on two beaches.

Rescuers were able to save many of the whales that were stranded on the island in Australia.

The recent string of whale strandings have captured worldwide attention and highlighted how difficult it is for scientists and experts to prevent such incidents.

Researchers don't know why whales get stranded.

What can be done about whales stranding and why?

Scientists don't know why whale strandings occur, but they've got some ideas

There are some theories as to why whales end up on land.

The cetaceans include whales, dolphins, and porpoises. Some whales and dolphins have gotten stranded in large numbers.

The toothed whales use echolocation to communicate with each other.

Some whales may get stranded because of a mistake.

The recent stranding on the Chatham Islands could be related to the deep waters around the very remote land mass.

It could be that these animals may have been fishing or transiting through the water and ended up on the beach.

The pilot whales may follow a sick whale that ends up on the beach in order to be more social.

Other reasons whales may strand is that they're fleeing from a predator, that they're scared by a noise, or that they're pregnant.

Any animal involved in a stranding doesn't want to be stranded, that's the main point.

We don't know why. It's a huge mystery in the science world.

Whale strandings aren't preventable, but sometimes the animals can be saved

Scientists can try to save the whales if they are still alive by the time they reach the beach.

whales breathe air and can survive on land If you see someone splashing a beached whale with water, it's because it needs to be cooled down.

The weight of the whales' bodies can crush their organs if they are stuck on the beach.

Scientists may try to move whales out to sea in a process called re-floating.

There are pitfalls to this strategy as well. The International Whaling Commission says that whales may be killed by internal injuries if they are returned to the ocean.

Some whales that are successfully re-floated may strand again.

The whales that survived the initial stranding on the Chatham Islands were euthanized due to a lack of trained medics and nearby sharks.

Strandings make the news, but it's unclear if they're happening more frequently

It's not uncommon for one or a few animals to get washed up on the shore.

There were 7,320 confirmed strandings of cetaceans, sea lions and seals in the US in the last year.

There have been several high-profile strandings in recent years, including the deaths of hundreds of pilot whales off the coast of Australia.

It is not known if the deadly events are becoming more frequent. There has been a rise in the number of cetacean strandings, according to some research.