The bottlenose whale which was rescued yesterday evening after it stranded on the beach of Engey island, outside the Old Harbor in downtown Reykjavík, appears to have survived the ordeal and was last seen far out in Faxaflói bay, swimming in the direction of Snæfellsnes peninsula in West Iceland. Two female bottlenose whales had stranded on Engey island earlier in the day. One of the two animals died before the tide came in, allowing marine biologists, volunteers from whale watching companies in Reykjavík, the Icelandic Coast Guard and ICE-SAR to guide the animals back to sea and safety.
Read more: One of the two bottlenose dolphins who stranded yesterday in Reykjavík survived
Sverrir Tryggvason, a guide with the whale watching company Special Tours, told the National Broadcasting Service RÚV that the whale appeared to in very good condition, considering the events of the day. Sverrir and a few other guides and volunteers followed the whale out to sea after it was freed from shore where it had been stranded since sometime before one in the afternoon.
Survived remarkably long after stranding
Sverir and his companions followed the whale far out into Faxaflói to ensure that it would not return back to shore. When the whale was far off the coast of Akranes town in West Iceland they deemed it safe to return to shore. We kept a close eye on her, and when we left her she was swimming in a straight line in the general direction of Snæfellsnes peninsula to the north.
Edda Elísabet Magnúsdóttir, a marine biologist and whale expert at the University of Iceland told RÚV that the animal showed remarkable tenacity. Bottlenose whales are not expected to survive more than two hours on dry land. The whale which died had managed to hold on for at least five hours when it died, while the one that survived had been on dry land for at least six hours when it finally returned to the sea.
The bottlenose whale which was rescued yesterday evening after it stranded on the beach of Engey island, outside the Old Harbor in downtown Reykjavík, appears to have survived the ordeal and was last seen far out in Faxaflói bay, swimming in the direction of Snæfellsnes peninsula in West Iceland. Two female bottlenose whales had stranded on Engey island earlier in the day. One of the two animals died before the tide came in, allowing marine biologists, volunteers from whale watching companies in Reykjavík, the Icelandic Coast Guard and ICE-SAR to guide the animals back to sea and safety.
Read more: One of the two bottlenose dolphins who stranded yesterday in Reykjavík survived
Sverrir Tryggvason, a guide with the whale watching company Special Tours, told the National Broadcasting Service RÚV that the whale appeared to in very good condition, considering the events of the day. Sverrir and a few other guides and volunteers followed the whale out to sea after it was freed from shore where it had been stranded since sometime before one in the afternoon.
Survived remarkably long after stranding
Sverir and his companions followed the whale far out into Faxaflói to ensure that it would not return back to shore. When the whale was far off the coast of Akranes town in West Iceland they deemed it safe to return to shore. We kept a close eye on her, and when we left her she was swimming in a straight line in the general direction of Snæfellsnes peninsula to the north.
Edda Elísabet Magnúsdóttir, a marine biologist and whale expert at the University of Iceland told RÚV that the animal showed remarkable tenacity. Bottlenose whales are not expected to survive more than two hours on dry land. The whale which died had managed to hold on for at least five hours when it died, while the one that survived had been on dry land for at least six hours when it finally returned to the sea.
