Tests aim to find washed up whale's cause of death

Fistral beach was closed so workers could remove the whale carcass

A dead fin whale that washed up on a beach in Cornwall is being removed.

Fistral beach in Newquay has been closed while the carcass is dismantled and taken away.

Work has stopped and is due to resume on Friday.

Cornwall Council has asked people to avoid the area and respect the cordon that "is likely to be in place" until Friday.

A whale is being removed from Fistral beach in Newquay

A post-mortem examination on the 16m (52ft) whale was carried out earlier.

Cornwall Wildlife Trust said samples taken from the animal were being analysed to determine a cause of death.

The trust said the female whale, which is thought to be a juvenile, was very malnourished.

It said it could be weeks before the results were known.

The council previously said it needed specialist machinery to dismantle the carcass.

The fin whale - known as the "greyhound of the sea" for their speed - is the world's second-largest animal after the blue whale.

It is the second one to wash up in Cornwall this year.

A post-mortem examination on the carcass was carried out on Thursday