A humpback whale that had been stranded in shallow waters near Germany since March has finally been released into the North Sea, rescuers say.
Nicknamed “Timmy” by German media, the whale was spotted swimming near the coast of the Baltic Sea on March 3, far from his natural habitat in the Atlantic Ocean.
The young male’s health had deteriorated as he became repeatedly stranded in shallow waters near the coastal city of Wismar, with attempts to coax him toward deeper seas proving unsuccessful.
His ordeal gained plenty of public attention in Germany, with local media producing dayslong livestreams on the rescue effort and online newspapers blasting push alerts on the smallest updates on Timmy’s health.
The environment minister for Germany’s Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania state gave the green light for the attempt to save the whale, proposed by a private initiative.
This was despite some warnings from the scientific community that the move would cause severe stress to an already sick animal.
Timmy being transported towards the North Sea in a flooded cargo ship. Credit: AP
Rescuers spent hours getting Timmy onto a flooded barge, guiding him through a specially dredged channel and using straps to pull him onto the vessel.
Jens Schwarck, a member of the private initiative who was on site, said the whale was released around 9am local time on Saturday, according to the German news agency dpa.
The agency reported that the whale was released about 45 miles from the coast of Skagen, Denmark. His ordeal is not over yet, as it is hoped he will find the strength to swim further to the Atlantic Ocean.
A debate emerged about whether to let the whale die in peace or try to assist his return home.
Activists staged protests on the beach in Wismar calling for his liberation, while others have supported new ideas about how the whale could be transported.
Some scientists believe the whale had searched for shallow waters because he was weak and needed rest. The veterinarians of the private initiative, however, considered the animal fit for transport.
Before the release, a GPS transmitter was reportedly attached to track the whale’s future location, according to dpa.
It is not clear why the whale swam so far from his natural habitat.
Some experts say the animal may have lost his way while swimming after a shoal of herring or during migration.
Since then, the mammal became repeatedly stranded in shallow waters. He was in clear distress, breathing irregularly and often barely moving for days.
Timmy also suffered from a bad skin condition, related to the Baltic Sea’s low salt content, and rescuers applied kilos of zinc ointment.
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