The humpback whale found dead in the Greifswalder Bodden likely succumbed to a bacterial infection, with the German Oceanographic Museum suspecting sepsis as the cause of death, researchers said following an autopsy conducted over the weekend.
The 10-metre, seven-tonne male, estimated at three to four years old, had been drifting in the lagoon after multiple sightings along the German and Polish Baltic coast. Scientists discovered two rounded openings on the whale's back, abscesses near the spine and right flipper joint, and reddish-brown discolouration across its skin. Its stomach and intestines were empty, and a six-centimetre blubber layer pointed to a prolonged period without feeding. The animal probably died on Wednesday or Thursday of last week.
The carcass was recovered by the Baltic Waterways and Shipping Office before the examination, which took place Friday and Saturday in temperatures reaching 30 degrees Celsius.