Anatomy of a Riddle: Why a Whale's Sex Can Only Be Reliably Determined After Death

Furthermore, when stranded, the whale usually lies on its belly, meaning the crucial region is not visible at all, experts explain. Additional clues were provided by Timmy's carcass itself: in dead males, the penis often protrudes outwards, which was not observed in this animal. A grapefruit-sized bulge directly next to the genital slit, which only females have, also indicated the animal's actual sex.

According to an expert, the decisive clue came from a second look at photos of the live animal: milk ridges, which only females have, were visible in them. A Sea Shepherd member, Florian Stadler, sharply criticized the misidentification: "Did they guess, or do they have no idea about whales?"

Singing, Grunting, and False Conclusions

The rescue initiative had also interpreted the animal's behavior as supposedly male. Male humpback whales are the only ones that sing – they do so to impress females and drive away rivals, according to a statement. Females can call, communicate, and make sounds, but they do not sing. The initiative had described the whale as singing and cooperating with the rescue. In reality, however, the animal emitted deep grunts and growls when approached by people and boats, which cannot necessarily be interpreted as singing.

Anja Gallus, a biologist at the German Ocean Museum in Stralsund, sees modern methods as a solution to the problem. "Sex determination via DNA is relatively quick and uncomplicated nowadays if you have the equipment and trained personnel," she said. The carcass provided clarification afterward because internal organs can be directly examined in dead animals.

DNA from Water and Breath Samples as Alternatives

The "eWhale" project in the Mediterranean shows how complex DNA sampling in the field can be. There, tourists on whale-watching tours collect water samples precisely where a whale surfaces. The water is filtered, the DNA is extracted, and analyzed in the laboratory. Additionally, according to Gallus, breath samples from live animals could provide information about stress levels or certain diseases: "Using a breath sample, one could have diagnosed stress levels or some diseases back then as well."

Another aspect shows how the determination of sex can become a socially charged issue: it is a symbolic order "in which masculinity appears as the norm and female existence as deviation," according to the French philosopher and feminist Simone de Beauvoir. In Timmy's case, clarity about the sex was achieved after the autopsy on the beach, but for many whale species, males and females often differ only slightly in their external appearance.

The entire rescue operation, from loading the animal into the water taxi to its removal just before the North Sea, cost well over a million euros, according to the initiative's own figures. For weeks, the humpback whale had kept Germany on edge. Now, its death provides an anatomical lesson on how deceptive visible characteristics can be in giants of the sea.