Nearly two years after an emaciated fin whale washed up in Maine, the skeleton will be hoisted above the Maine Beer Co. tap room, becoming one of the few places outside of a museum where you can see the enormity of whale bones in full.
The fin whale nicknamed "Finny" by the College of the Atlantic Allied Whale staff beached near Steuben, Maine, on Thanksgiving 2023. Allied Whale students, staff and volunteers recovered Finny’s skeleton with funding support from the Maine Beer Co.
At 49.6 feet long, Finny was on the small side of a full-grown adult fin whale. According to NOAA, fin whales are the second-largest whale species on the planet, second to the blue whale. These majestic marine mammals can grow up to 85 feet long and live up to 90 years old.
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Dan DenDanto, of Whales and Nails, oversaw the cleaning and reassembly of Finny’s bones, which will be suspended above the Maine Beer Co. tasting room, "giving her a second life to spark curiosity and connection to these magnificent animals," according to the Beer Co.
The Maine Beer Co. has long ties to whales, as does coastal Maine. Its India Pale Ale is named Lunch, after a famous fin whale spotted offshore in Maine with a bite out of her dorsal fin. The brewery in Freeport, Maine, has been donating to the Allied Whale since 2009, as long as it has been in business. Maine Beer Co. donates at least 1% of its gross annual sales to environmental nonprofits.
"While not Lunch, this fin whale skeleton serves as a reminder of our lasting partnership in support of the wild and majestic marine mammals of Maine," the brewery said.
According to the College of the Atlantic, Finny will be one of the only articulated whale exhibits in the U.S. on public display outside of a museum or foundation.
An Oct. 1 event will officially welcome Finny to her new home with a fundraiser at the Maine Beer Co. for Allied Whale.
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