After days of concern and repeated rescue efforts, a humpback whale stranded in the Baltic Sea near Wismar has managed to free itself, raising hopes that it can now be guided back towards the open ocean.
“He had regained enough strength to respond to the motivation from our boat and start swimming again”, said Till Backhaus, Environment Minister of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. However, the whale initially headed in the wrong direction, towards the port of Wismar.
Earlier, the Environment Ministry of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, experts from the German Museum for Oceanography and Fisheries, Aquarium, and representatives from Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd had reported that the whale’s condition had improved. They said the calm conditions provided for the animal had clearly had a positive effect.
Greenpeace activist Sandra Schöttner explained that her colleagues were working alongside the water police to guide the whale back on course. While the animal still has a long journey ahead, she described its movement as an important first step.
Burkard Baschek, scientific director of the German Museum for Oceanography and Fisheries, Aquarium, said efforts would now focus on keeping the whale away from the harbour. He said that they will monitor its position closely on Tuesday.
The whale, currently in Wismar Bay off the coast of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, is believed to have entered the Baltic Sea around four weeks ago. Last Monday, it was first found stranded on a sandbank off the coast of Schleswig-Holstein.
After several days, it managed to free itself following a complex rescue operation involving dredging equipment, but became stranded again on Saturday in Wismar Bay. Its fate has since attracted nationwide attention.
Large whales are not native to the Baltic Sea, as conditions there are unsuitable for them. The humpback whale, nicknamed ‘Timmy’ by the media, is believed to be suffering from skin problems due to the low salinity of the Baltic waters. It is also reported to still have remnants of a fishing net in its mouth, which have not yet been fully removed.
How the whale entered the Baltic Sea and why it has not yet managed to leave remains unclear. The current aim is to guide it through the narrow sea passages between Germany, Denmark, and Sweden, from where it could return to the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.
