STORY SUMMARY>>>

The carcass of a rotting sperm whale was buried Thursday after sitting on a rocky shelf near Kahuku Point for the past two weeks.

The removal of the dead whale proved to be a show stopper when bones harvested by Hawaii Pacific University biology students fell out of the bed of a pickup truck onto the road at Kahekili Highway and Haiku Road. The students were transporting the bones back to the university for research.

Traffic was backed up for several miles as the students dragged the large bones off the roadway onto the median of the highway.

Earlier in the day, a team of experts from NOAA Fisheries, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources and the HPU students worked for several hours to remove the dead animal from a rocky shoreline.

"Basically very unceremoniously (we) just drug it up over the lava ledge onto the beach," said David Schofield, the Marine Mammal Response Coordinator with the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration.

Schofield estimated the 35 foot long carcass weighed 8 to 10 tons, even with one-third of the animal's body already missing. Because it was so badly decomposed, researchers will never know the exact cause of the sperm whale's death or its sex.

However Assistant Professor of Biology at HPU Kristi West says the animal's teeth and bones will reveal important information like its age and diet.

"In this case we actually can learn quite a bit from these bones although our animal was pretty decomposed," said West.

After a backhoe operator placed the whale carcass into a dumpster, it was buried in a 25 foot deep hole across Kamehameha Highway. A private landowner agreed to bury the whale on the property.

State officials are warning people to stay out of the water near Kahuku Point for the next day or so because of the threat of sharks.

Schofield says any boater who spots a whale carcass at sea can contact the U.S. Coast Guard or the Marine Mammal Response Hotline at 888-256-9840.

Early notification could help prevent future beach strandings.

Andrew may be reached at apereira@khon2.com or ph. 591-4263.