Massive 52-foot endangered whale washes up on San Diego beach

A dead 52-foot fin whale washed up on a San Diego beach on Sunday morning (10 December).

A crowd of spectators gathered near the animal before lifeguards advised people to stay away.

The animal was bleeding from its side, but this appeared to be from birds pecking at it, according to an officer from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Researchers were not able to immediately determine how the whale, a female juvenile, had died.

The fin whale is the second largest mammal in the world after the blue whale and is classed as endangered due to the threat of commercial whaling.