Sad news after the dramatic rescue of a beluga whale that took several hours and got lost in the Seine near Paris: the already severely weakened animal did not survive. It died in transit, apparently suffering from respiratory problems.
“Despite the unprecedented action taken to save the beluga whale, we regret to announce that the whale has passed away,” the prefect of the Calvados department in northern France said on Twitter.
“Very underweight” and injured
The animal’s chance of survival had previously been estimated by veterinarians as low. The male whale is “very underweight” and has “a few wounds,” Deputy Prefect Isabelle Dorliat-Pouzet said early in the morning. The expert involved in the rescue, Isabelle Brasseur of Zoo Marineland in southern France, had also warned that the whale could die in transit or at its destination in Ouistreham – unfortunately she was right.
Caught in a lock
The marine mammal, four meters long and about 800 kilograms in weight, was first spotted in the Seine last Tuesday and has been trapped in a lock in Saint-Pierre-La-Garenne about 70 kilometers from Paris since Friday. 130 kilometers from the mouth of the Seine at the Channel. In recent days, several attempts to feed the weakened animal had failed – the reason: according to the maritime conservation organization Sea Shepherd, the beluga had serious digestive problems.
To try and save the animal’s life, the beluga was lifted from the Seine by crane on Wednesday night. The plan was to take the animal to a seawater tank, nurse it there and release it. It shouldn’t get that far though…
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
