Divers have been able to confirm that a dead humpback whale spotted off the Danish coast is the same creature that was nicknamed “Timmy” after it was stranded for more than a month off the northern German coast in the Baltic Sea.
Denmark’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) confirmed this news on Saturday.
It already seemed more likely that the whale was an injured humpback that was seriously ill by the time it was pulled from the German beach.
Animal protection groups warned that the whales had little chance of long-term survival.
How did the Danish authorities confirm that it was indeed Timmy?
In a preliminary investigation on Friday, tracking equipment attached to “Timmy” could not be seen by rescuers due to the position of the dead whale in the water.
But on Saturday divers were able to photograph the animal’s dorsal fin.
“Conditions today made it possible for a local employee of the Danish Nature Agency to locate and retrieve the attached tracking device that was still strapped to the whale’s back,” Jan Hansen, division head of the Danish Environmental Protection Agency, said in a statement to the AFP news agency.
“The position and appearance of the device confirms that this is the same whale that was previously sighted and handled in German waters.”
How did the German authorities react to the news of Timmy’s death?
Till Backhaus, environment minister of the state of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, thanked Danish authorities for assistance in identifying the whale.
He again defended his decision to disregard the advice of some expert marine life groups in his state to attempt a private rescue operation. He said it was tragic that the whale was not able to “take advantage of its slim chance” of survival.
Backhaus, who at the time boasted about how the controversial rescue operation had “saved” the creature, said, “I consider it perfectly humane to take even the smallest opportunity when life is at stake. Anyone who wants to criticize it can do so.”
Backhaus stressed, “It was always about balancing which option was the worst: waiting for the animal’s certain death, or giving it one last chance and exposing it to potential stress in the process.”