Baltic Sea marine life deaths prompt scientific investigations

Marine biologists in Denmark and Germany are investigating the deaths of two large marine animals found in the Baltic Sea.

A 4.7-meter-long female whale shark, weighing nearly 400 kilograms, was found dead near the harbor of Ålbæk, Denmark. Experts from the Nordsøen Oceanarium conducted a necropsy, noting that the animal appeared to be in good nutritional condition and had recently eaten. While some parasites were found on the skin and in the intestine, researchers stated that sharks typically tolerate such infestations. The exact cause of death remains unknown.

In Germany, a seven-meter-long humpback whale was discovered dead in the Greifswalder Bodden near Rügen. A team of scientists from the German Oceanographic Museum Stralsund is performing an autopsy to determine the cause of death. This follows several recent sightings of whales along the Baltic coast, including near Kiel and Wismar.