Skip to content
All news
  • All news
  • About whales & dolphins
  • Corporates
  • Create healthy seas
  • End captivity
  • Green Whale
  • Prevent deaths in nets
  • Scottish Dolphin Centre
  • Stop whaling
  • Stranding
  • Whale watching
Common dolphin

WDC takes ‘A Walk in the Park…with Animal Friends’

Longstanding WDC partner Animal Friends returns with season two of their podcast 'A Walk in...
Japanese whaling ship

Infamous whale slaughter ship docks for the final time

The whaling ship, Nisshin Maru has returned to the port of Shimonoseki for the final...
Sperm whale

Dominica announces new protections for sperm whales

Dominica has placed almost 800 square kilometers of sea off the west coast of the...
Porpoise dies after becoming entangled in fishing net

UK government rejects chance to protect whales and dolphins

The government has formally rejected almost all of the crucial recommendations made in a House...

Rare Sowerby’s beaked whale spotted in the Baltic Sea found dead

A rare Sowerby’s beaked whale has been found stranded on the Swedish shoreline of the Baltic Sea. A closer inspection and a post-mortem examination of the individual is yet to be undertaken however it is most likely that it is the same whale that was previously sighted around Wohlenberger Wiek, in the southwest part of the Wismar Bay on the Baltic coast.

Sowerby’s whales are a deep-diving oceanic species and you would not expect to find one in the relatively shallow waters of the Baltic Sea. Nevertheless, since the beginning of October an individual was sighted several times in the area and began to draw large crowds of enthusiastic whale-watchers. Given the unsuitability of the habitat which is neither deep enough nor provides suitable prey items, sadly the individual only ever had a very slight chance of survival.

An additional obstacle for the young whale was the lack of other members of its own species in the area. Had the individual been accompanied by other Sowerby’s beaked whales there is a chance that as a group, they may have managed to find their way back out to open water, however as a young, inexperienced whale on its own, the chances were pretty slim.

Results of the post-mortem will help to determine the cause of death and provide valuable information on a little known species. 

About George Berry

George is a member of WDC's Communications team and website coordinator.