Jens Büttner / DPA / GettyA helper splashes a stranded humpback whale at sunset in shallow waters of the Baltic Sea near Fährdorf, off the island of Poel, Germany, on April 24, 2026. The humpback whale, nicknamed Timmy by German media, became stranded in the area three weeks earlier.Daniel Bockwoldt / DPA / GettyGreenpeace boats sail alongside a whale lying in the Baltic Sea on March 29, 2026, near the the island of Poel.Ulrich Perrey / DPA / GettySeveral excavators are used near the stranded whale on March 26, 2026.Daniel Bockwoldt / DPA / GettyJournalists follow the rescue attempts near the stranded whale on March 26, 2026.Marcus Golejewski / DPA / GettyWater is sprayed on Timmy the whale, still stranded on a sandbank off the island of Poel on April 11, 2026.Bernd Wüstneck / DPA / GettyPontoons, two cranes, and more equipment for rescuing the stranded humpback whale arrive by truck at the port of Kirchdorf on the Baltic Sea island of Poel on April 16, 2026. The equipment was set up to be used in a new rescue attempt for the humpback whale stranded off the island.Bernd Wüstneck / DPA / GettyIn the port of Kirchdorf pontoons are lowered in sections, ready to be used to rescue the stranded whale, on April 16, 2026.Morris MacMatzen / GettyAn excavator on a floating pontoon sits in a standby position near the stranded whale off the island of Poel on April 17, 2026. Authorities said its survival chances were growing dimmer by the day. Rescuers, in a last-ditch effort, hoped to remove sand from beneath the whale and then transport the whale to the North Sea.Stefan Sauer / DPA / GettyAn aerial view of the stranded whale, seen off the island of Poel on April 18, 2026, with its back covered with cloth for protectionMorris MacMatzen / GettyVeterinarian Janine Bahr-van Gemmert gestures as she speaks to the assembled media during a press conference at the harbor of Kirchdorf about the stranded humpback whale during efforts to save it on April 18, 2026, near Wismar, Germany.Jens Büttner / DPA / GettyHelpers splash the stranded whale with water on April 21, 2026. The animal had swum free the day before, traveling several kilometers before becoming stranded again.Philip Dulian / DPA / GettyAn aerial view of the excavator rig set up close to the stranded whale on April 22, 2026Marcus Golejewski / DPA / GettyHelpers work to clear away sand beneath the stranded humpback whale on April 22, 2026.Philip Dulian / DPA / GettyAn aerial view of a newly dug channel that leads from the stranded whale into deeper water, seen on April 25, 2026Bodo Marks / DPA / GettyA barge is pushed by a boat along the Kiel Canal near Hohenhörn, Germany, on April 26, 2026. The barge is set to transport the Timmy the whale through the Baltic Sea to the North Sea, if it can be successfully freed.Jens Büttner / DPA / GettyHelpers use straps to try to pull the stranded whale along the dredged channel toward a transport barge on April 28, 2026.Philip Dulian / DPA / GettyThe whale swims and is pulled toward the transport barge on April 28, 2026.NonstopNews / Schwarck / ReutersPeople pull and guide the stranded humpback whale into a barge during rescue efforts organized by a private initiative in shallow waters of the Baltic Sea near Wismar, Germany, on April 28, 2026.Jens Büttner / DPA / GettyHelpers celebrate after the stranded whale was pulled into the transport barge on April 28, 2026.Stefan Sauer / DPA / GettyThe formerly stranded whale sits inside the barge intended for its transportation on April 28, 2026, seen at the end of a short channel dug to help pull it away from a sandbar.Christoph Reichwein / DPA / ReutersTimmy the whale is towed in a barge by a tugboat along the Danish coast below Skagen, in the so-called Skagerrak, through the Baltic Sea.Bodo Marks / DPA / GettyA tug named Robin Hood pulls the barge with Timmy the whale toward the Baltic Sea in the evening, seen off Wismar on April 28, 2026.Philip Dulian / DPA / GettyAn aerial view of Timmy in the flooded barge, being towed near the Danish border on April 29, 2026. Timmy was reportedly outfitted with a GPS transmitter to track its progress during a difficult recovery after being stranded for weeks.Sebastian Peters / NEWS5 / AFP / GettyAn aerial photo taken on May 2, 2026, shows the rescued humpback whale offshore near Skagen, after it was released from a barge. It had been struggling to survive after beaching off the German coast but was released into the North Sea off Denmark, Germany’s News5 agency said. Dubbed Timmy by the German media, the whale was first spotted stuck on a sandbank on March 23 near the city of Luebeck before freeing itself and then becoming stuck again several times. Some experts expressed concern about the whale’s immediate prospects, noting that the whale had been quite ill, and that such a lengthy stranding weakened it significantly.
