A large whale that beached at Coromandel's Matapaua Bay last year, and was subsequently moved and buried at Wharekaho/Simpsons Beach, is now exposed after Cyclone Hale wreaked havoc in the region this week.
Images supplied to Newshub on Wednesday night show the remains on top of the sand.
"Part of the whale has been exposed as a result of the cyclonic conditions and heavy swell hitting the region," Department of Conservation (DoC) Coromandel operations manager Nick Kelly said on Thursday.
"DoC staff inspected the whale burial site at Wharekaho yesterday, alongside Ngāti Hei representatives.
"At this point, it is too dangerous for us to carry out any remedial work but once conditions/weather settles, we will rebury the exposed part of the animal," Kelly said.
Local iwi would continue monitoring the site, he said.
The 16-metre-long sperm whale washed up at Matapaua Bay in October and was towed nearly 12 kilometres south to Wharekaho - the site of an ancient Ngāti Hei pā.
Kelly said there was no intention to move the whale, despite the exposure.
"We have had one previous recent incident, about 3 years ago, when storm surges/swells uncovered buried pilot whales at Matarangi - these animals were relocated as a result, after discussion with iwi.
"To be clear - there is no current intention to move the sperm whale at Wharekaho and we expect to rebury it with sand when conditions and logistics allow."
The traditional practice of flensing - cutting the skin and fat from a whale - was undertaken before it was buried in October.
It was the first sperm whale Ngāti Hei had seen on its shores in a century.
