Experts do not rule out that Timmy the whale, released into the North Sea, may have died – media
Kyiv • UNN
The German Oceanographic Museum suggests that Timmy the whale may have died due to the lack of GPS signals after his release into the sea.
Since the whale's release on May 2, the German Oceanographic Museum has not received any data from the GPS tracker installed on the animal. The last confirmation that Timmy was alive was drone footage at the moment the whale was released into the North Sea. This was reported by the conservation organization, according to UNN with reference to Bild.
Experts assume that the extremely weakened animal "did not have sufficient strength to swim in deep waters for a long time and is no longer alive," the German Oceanographic Museum stated. The organization emphasized that only precise data from the tracker could confirm or refute this status, but the private individuals who managed the rescue mission have not provided this information to the museum.
Rescued whale Timmy released into the sea without a working GPS03.05.26, 01:05 • 7819 views
Timmy the humpback whale, who became stranded in shallow waters in the Baltic Sea more than a month ago, was released into the North Sea on the morning of May 2. The rescue operation was a private initiative: entrepreneurs Karin Walter-Mommert and Walter Gunz stated they spent about 1.5 million euros on the effort.
Animal rights activists already had questions on Saturday regarding how the rescue operation was conducted. The circumstances under which the whale was released into the sea remain unknown. The organizers of the initiative distanced themselves from the process, stating they did not participate directly in the whale's release and "categorically distance themselves" from the manner in which it was carried out. Later, the mission organizers claimed that the sensor allegedly installed on Timmy has limited functionality and does not transmit the animal's coordinates.