Scientists are trying to figure out the cause of death for a whale that washed up on Cuttyhunk over the weekend. 

The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) was alerted to the dead whale on Sunday morning, and officials with the Cape-based conservation group were able to get to the island later that day. 

Scientists determined the cetacean was a 32-foot long female sperm whale, weighing about 22,000 pounds, said Stacey Hedman, a spokesperson for IFAW. 

“We were able to get transportation over and perform only a limited external exam, due to the location of the stranding and the conditions on the beach,” she said on Monday. 

There were no obvious external wounds on the whale, and IFAW officials have anchored and satellite tagged the carcass. Plans for a full necropsy are still pending. 

Dale Lynch, the assistant harbor master on Cuttyhunk, said the whale was found alive on the south side of the island, straight across from the Gay Head Cliffs, by a walker. He in turn contacted federal officials and IFAW, and the whale later died.

Sperm whales are found in all of the earth’s deep oceans, from the ice-packed poles to the equator. They are so named for the waxy substance — spermaceti — found in their heads. The oil was highly sought after in the whaling days of yore for its use in oil lamps, lubricants and candles. 

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, female sperm whales reach maturity around nine years of age when they grow to about 29-feet long, meaning the Cuttyhunk whale was seemingly an adult.