Overview

• Passersby at Munkmarsch tried to push the roughly 3.8‑meter whale into deeper water, but it repeatedly re‑stranded after days of disoriented sightings including near the Ellenbogen tip.
• Licensed seal hunter Sönke Lorenzen shot the animal after rescue attempts failed, with colleague Thomas Diedrichsen describing the action as an authorised mercy killing.
• The whale swam in circles and appeared confused, behavior Diedrichsen said points to a possible neurological problem.
• Field observations noted severe emaciation and a suspected fungal infection around the mouth, and reports indicated the animal may have been a young juvenile separated from its mother.
• Authorities recovered the carcass with machinery and sent it to the Büsum wildlife institute for examination, with results expected in the coming weeks as researchers stress beaked whales are rarely seen near shore.