The two pygmy sperm whales, a mother and her calf, were found
stranded on Mahia Beach, about 500 kilometers (300 miles) northeast of
the capital of Wellington, on Monday morning, said Conservation
Department worker Malcolm Smith.
Rescuers worked for more than
one hour to get the whales back into the water, only to see them strand
themselves four times on a sandbar slightly out to sea. It looked
likely the whales would have to be euthanized to prevent them suffering
a prolonged death, Smith said.
"They kept getting disorientated
and stranding again," said Smith, who was among the rescuers. "They
obviously couldn't find their way back past (the sandbar) to the sea."
Along came Moko, who approached the whales and led them 200 meters
(yards) along the beach and through a channel out to the open sea.