Whale in the Thames estuary:
NATURALISTS flocked to the banks of the Thames at Gravesend, Kent, yesterday after a lost beluga whale was spotted thousands of miles from its home in the Arctic.
Although belugas are occasionally seen off the northern British coastline, they are usually in pods and it is the first time the marine mammal has been sighted so far south.
Puzzled conservationists initially thought the white hump breaching the water belonged to an albino harbour porpoise, but as it surfaced to breathe its bulbous head and lack of a dorsal fin confirmed it was a beluga.
However, initial excitement turned to concern as the whale appeared unable to find its way back out to sea, remaining trapped and “thrashing about” in a 600 sq ft area near Tilbury, one of London’s major ports.
As the evening drew in scores of people watched anxiously through binoculars as huge freight ships sailed near the whale in quick succession, and experts warned that the mammal appeared to be “in trouble” after it became sluggish.
Lee Evans, a wildlife expert, said: “It’s in grave danger. It’s stuck next to a buoy, only coming up to breathe. It was a lot more active earlier. It’s either stuck or there’s something wrong with it.
“Last weekend there was a great big wind from the north which probably pushed it down here.
“They only ever come to these narrow estuaries when there’s something very wrong. The Thames is far too warm for it and I doubt it can feed.”
The whale was first seen by Dave Andrews, an ecologist, who tweeted footage yesterday morning, adding: “Can’t believe I am writing this, no joke. Beluga in the Thames.”
Many locals took to boats to watch the rare spectacle, prompting British Divers Marine Life Rescue to urge people not to go on the water.
Gary Taylor, 50, from Kent, a keen birdwatcher, took the day off from his job as a property developer to see the whale. “You’d usually have to go to the Arctic to see this,” he said.
Rupert Kaye, 58, travelled from Putney in London. He said: “I saw the bottlenose whale in the Thames a few years ago but this is on another level. They’re highly intelligent and have great navigational skills, but who knows if it’ll find its way home.”
Last night animal and marine charities were working together to help the whale return to the sea and had a medical team on standby in case it became beached.
Danny Groves, from Whale and Dolphin Conservation, said: “This is a high Arctic species thousands of miles from where it should be in Greenland, Svalbard or the Barents Sea. They are usually found close to the ice.”
The last beluga sightings were off the Northumberland and Northern Ireland coasts in 2015, and the mammals are usually only spotted in the North Sea off Scotland. Lucy Babey, the head of science and conservation at Orca, a charity dedicated to the conservation of whales, dolphins and porpoises around the UK coastline, said: “Considering how far the animal is from its range, it may be distressed and so it is vital that onlookers both on land and at sea keep their distance.”