A mother pygmy whale has stranded and died on Gisborne's main beach and her calf was put down by Department of Conservation staff.
The whales were spotted by peope walking on the beach on Friday morning.
When police and DOC rangers arrived the 3 metre adult was already dead.
DOC staff decided the calf was still suckling on its mother and would not have survived without her so was put down.
On Friday, six pygmy sperm whales stranded at Mahia.
