Twenty one Pilot whales are now swimming safely away from Farewell Spit thanks to the effort of local Department of Conservation staff and volunteers. Some of the original number were stranded and could not be helped. However the use of a small boat to shepherd the whales out to sea as the tide fell was very effective. A small army of helpers was on hand to assist but the majority were not needed. This was the third whale stranding on the spit in just a few weeks. Three beaked whales on the ocean beach a Sperm whale in Puponga and now the pilot whales. The Farewell Spit whale trap is very effective this year.