John Blanding/Globe Staff

A finback whale was beached in Rockport on Monday. The town will let the animal decompose rather than bury or remove it.

John Blanding/Globe Staff

The whale has become a local tourist attraction.

John Blanding/Globe Staff

Removing the large carcass could cost from $5,000 to $20,000, so it will be left to decay on the beach.

John Blanding/Globe Staff

An investigator for the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution removed a bone. The whale is too far decomposed to be of research value.