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Whale Death May Help Save Entire Species

Posted on: Monday, 23 January 2006, 09:00 CST

By Louise Gray

MARINE experts hope worldwide public interest in the whale that was stranded in London's River Thames will promote conservation of the endangered species.

Rescue teams tried to return the adolescent 18ft northern bottle- nosed whale to the open seas, but it died on Saturday evening after its health took a turn for the worse.

"It was always a race against time," said Tony Woodley, of the British Divers Marine Life Rescue group, which co-ordinated the rescue attempt.

Paul Jepson, the head of the UK Marine Mammals Strandings Programme, said he hoped international coverage of the animal's fate would have a positive impact. "There are probably many children who may remember seeing this bottle-nosed whale in London and in the future I hope that they may become marine mammal enthusiasts and conservationists."

The whale captured headlines around the world after it was spotted on Friday in the Thames, near the Houses of Parliament, about 40 miles from the sea. It was the first time since records began in 1913 that a whale had been seen so far upstream.

Huge crowds lined the river banks during Saturday's elaborate rescue operation, with every twist and turn in the saga captured on live television.

Rescuers managed to lift the whale by crane on to a barge but it died as they tried to take it to open water.

Experts speculated that the whale was so far from its natural environment because it was very ill, had got lost chasing food or had been driven from its usual habitat by military testing or loud sonar.

The result of a post-mortem examination, to be conducted by Mr Jepson, will not be known for several days. However, experts are already blaming man-made noise, from the likes of boats and oil drilling, for disorientating the mammals. Roger Gale, the MP for North Thanet, said explosions carried out by the Ministry of Defence off the Kent coast may have caused the whale to swim off track.

Conservation groups took the argument further, suggesting that the fate of the whale was a clarion call to save the species elsewhere in the world.

A spokesman for the International Fund for Animal Welfare said: "We hope that the whale ... can act as ambassador for all whales and that its death won't be in vain."

Source: Scotsman, The

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