At least 75 whale skeletons, believed to be more than two millions years old, were recently unearthed in the Atacama Desert in Chile, a kilometer away from the ocean.  The find is believed to be the best preserved graveyard of pre-historic whales in the world. Of the 75 skeletons found, more than 20 are perfectly intact. Researchers speculate that there could be many more skeletons not yet discovered. Most of the fossils are baleen whales which measure about 25 feet long. The whale bones were discovered during a project to widen Pan American Highway, or Route 5, Chile’s main north-south road.

Mysterious mass whale graveyard unearthed in the Chilean desert

Scientists are baffled at how at least 75 whales could have died mere yards from one another, over a kilometer away from the sea.

Finding whale bones in the middle of the desert is strange enough, but scientists were quick to notice a deeper mystery. The fossils somehow ended up right next to one another– some mere meters apart– as if to suggest that the whales all died at once, possibly during some unspeakable, cataclysmic tragedy. What could have happened?

Thanks to Irwin Bryan for passing the story along.