The dead whale found near a Danish island is actually Timmy, and a tracking device was discovered
Timmy the Humpback Whale Found Dead Near Danish Island
A dead whale discovered off a Danish island has now been identified as Timmy, a humpback whale that had attracted major public and media attention in recent months. A tracking device attached to the whale was found on its remains, confirming its identity.
The whale was found near the Danish island of Anholt. According to the DPA news agency, authorities from the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and the Danish Environmental Protection Agency were informed about the discovery on Saturday.
Earlier, Danish authorities had announced that no transmitter had been found on the whale. However, on Saturday, divers from the Danish Nature Agency and a German veterinarian carried out a second examination and even dived beneath the whale’s body. During this inspection, the tracking device was finally recovered.
The new findings also confirmed that a previous rescue operation led by a private initiative had ultimately failed. On May 2, Timmy had been transported back to the open sea using a specialized boat and released into the Skagerrak Strait between Denmark, Sweden, and Norway.
After being released, the whale’s condition remained uncertain. Marine experts had already warned that its chances of long-term survival were extremely low. Earlier in April, German authorities had decided not to launch an official rescue mission after consulting specialists.
Humpback whales are commonly found in the Atlantic Ocean, but Timmy had been swimming in the Baltic Sea since at least early March. The whale first became stranded near Timmendorfer Strand, close to Lübeck, on the night of March 23. With human help, it managed to return to deeper waters, but continued to strand itself several times afterward, including near the island of Poel close to Wismar.
Timmy’s difficult journey and repeated strandings sparked strong public emotion and widespread media coverage across Germany and Denmark.
