An environment group is calling for better control of ship movements in Auckland's harbour after a endangered Bryde's whale was found floating dead near Waiheke Island in the Hauraki Gulf.
The whale found on Monday, is believed to have been hit by a ship, the second such incident in five months.
New Zealand is one of the few places in the world where there is a resident population of Bryde's whales, centred on the Hauraki Gulf, the Department of Conservation (DOC) says.
"There are fewer than 200 of these extraordinary creatures remaining in the Gulf. Urgent action is required to avoid any further ship strike incidents," said Environmental Defence Society policy director Raewyn Peart.
The society is holding a workshop in March to consider how to better control ship movements and better track the whales.
The 15m long female whale was buried at Calypso Bay after representatives of local iwi Ngati Paoa blessed the whale and the burial site.
"The necropsy (animal autopsy) has shown that the whale was alive when it was struck, most probably by a vessel," DOC Auckland biodiversity manager Phil Brown said.
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