Timmy, a humpback whale rescued from Germany’s Baltic coast and released into deep water in Denmark’s North Sea, is most likely dead, the German Oceanographic Museum said.
The whale remained stranded for more than a month and continued to lose strength before the rescue attempt.
The museum told the German newspaper Ostsee-Zeitung that it could not confirm Timmy’s death due to limited tracking data.
Experts said the whale likely lacked the strength to swim in deep water for a sustained period.
The rescue plan cost £1.3 million and involved transporting the whale in a water-filled barge. Private donors funded the operation despite calls from some observers to let the animal die peacefully.
MediaMarkt co-founder Walter Gunz and horse racing entrepreneur Karin Walter-Mommert financed the rescue attempt during widespread public attention in Germany.
The donors said they were prepared to pay whatever it cost to release Timmy. Officials had earlier abandoned rescue efforts due to the whale’s deteriorating health, but veterinarians and rescuers later carried out the transport.
Hopes continued until Monday because Timmy’s GPS tracker was still sending signals, though experts said the device could not confirm whether the whale was alive.
