Necropsy Set for Humpback Whale That Died After Controversial Rescue Attempt

A Difficult Recovery

Morten Abildstrøm of the Danish Nature Agency stated that the approximately two-hour operation went according to plan. "Alles ist nach Plan verlaufen," he said. The original plan was to tow the carcass across the Baltic Sea by boat to Jutland and examine it in the port city of Grenaa, but this was abandoned due to the advanced state of decomposition.

The carcass is so bloated that there is a risk of explosion. The Danish Environmental Agency urged locals and bathers not to approach the whale due to risk of infection, and a barrier was erected with caution tape a few meters around the decomposing animal, which now smells strongly.

The public necropsy is expected to begin in the afternoon and last about six hours, according to Morten Abildstrøm. "Die Obduktion wird am Nachmittag beginnen und etwa sechs Stunden dauern," he said. Veterinarians, authority representatives, and the press are expected to attend at a distance.

Criticism of the Rescue Mission

Whale researcher Peter Teglberg Madsen, who has been accompanying whale autopsies in Denmark for 25 years, will participate in the examination. He said the whale will smell strongly because it lay in the sun for a long time. "Weil das Tier so lange in der Sonne gelegen hat, wird es stark stinken," he stated.

Madsen has been sharply critical of the rescue operation, calling it 'pure animal cruelty'. He argued that the whale was a sick, weakened animal that had no chance. "Das war ganz offensichtlich ein krankes, entkräftetes Tier, das nicht gerettet werden konnte, und man hätte es einfach in Frieden lassen sollen," he said. "Die Aktion sei 'reine Tierquälerei' gewesen."

Madsen also noted that in four of the last six stranded humpback whales in Denmark, fishing nets demonstrably played a role in their death. "Bei vier der letzten sechs gestrandeten Buckelwale in Dänemark haben Fischernetze nachweislich eine Rolle bei ihrem Tod gespielt," he said. Experts will search the whale's intestines and esophagus for remains of fishing nets and plastic.

US whale expert Jeffrey Foster of the Whale Sanctuary Project was a key member of the private rescue initiative. He told Bild newspaper that a GPS tracker attached to the whale before its release sent signals for almost a week.

Conflicting Data from the Tracker

According to Foster, the tracker recorded more than 50 position transmissions and more than 30 depth recordings over six days via a CLS satellite tracker. "Über einen Zeitraum von sechs Tagen zeichnete der Tracker mehr als 50 Positionsübertragungen und mehr als 30 Tiefenaufzeichnungen mithilfe des CLS-Satelliten-Trackers auf," he said.

Foster claimed the whale traveled more than 150 miles, approximately 241.4 kilometers, from its release location. He also claimed the whale once dove to a depth of 150 meters and multiple times to 50 meters. The tracker data has not been independently verified and has not yet been published.

Karin Walter-Mommert, the funder of the rescue initiative, previously said the device sent only 'data mush' after initial signals. "Datenmatsch," she described it. A spokesperson for the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Environment Ministry confirmed that the transmitter is being collected from Denmark and the data will be evaluated. A press conference is planned to present the results.

The Search for Answers

Madsen said the primary goal of the necropsy is to determine what the animal died of, because the discussion was largely about whether the whale could have been saved or not. "Denn in der Diskussion ging es ja viel darum, ob der Wal gerettet werden konnte oder nicht," he stated. He assumes the animal had no chance from the outset.

Madsen further criticized that an animal that had never lived in captivity was locked in a metal box for days and transported across the sea. "Stattdessen habe man ein Tier, das noch nie in Gefangenschaft gelebt habe, tagelang in einer Metallkiste eingesperrt über das Meer bugsiert," he said.

The Danish Environment Ministry reported that the carcass would be recovered directly on Anholt and then necropsied. Jane Hansen of the Danish environmental authority said the work would be carried out in two phases: pulling the carcass ashore over the weekend and performing the necropsy toward the end of the following week. A tractor arrived near the whale to remove a long rope on the beach that had been used in previous failed recovery attempts.