Baby Minke Whale Beaches Self, Is Later Freed

A baby minke whale that beached itself in south Iceland has been freed, and is back in the ocean.

RÚV reports that the calf swam into a small boat harbour in Þórshöfn, south Iceland, yesterday morning, and got itself stuck. While it appeared to have sores on its body, its injuries were not considered serious.

Harbour master Jón Rúnar Jónsson told reporters he could not remember an event such as this happening in this area before, and had watched as the baby whale swam about in the harbour for a while before pushing itself up onto the shore.

Rescue workers and heavy machinery operators arrived at the scene to assist in the effort to get the calf back into the water. Other volunteers took part in the operation as well, helping out with such tasks as keeping the calf’s skin wet.

At last, after about 13 hours on shore, MBL reports the whale was freed. Further inspections of the harbour revealed no traces of the calf.

As such, it is presumed that the baby minke whale has reunited with its brethren in the ocean, hopefully to live a life that does not include ever appearing on Iceland’s shores again.