Saving A Small Humpback Whale

Colin was euthanised on 22 August 2008 due to his deteriorating condition. The calf's plight gained media attention as far afield as the United States, United Kingdom, Italy, Netherlands, Russia, Canada and New Zealand.
A subsequent autopsy found that Colin was terminally ill with an emaciated pancreas, ulcers of the stomach and oesophagus, intestinal erosion and infected shark bites. The calf was estimated to be only 7 to 10 days old and must have been separated from its mother shortly after birth.
• Thames beaching
On 12 September 2009, a humpback, seen in the London Thames for the first time ever. The 9.5m young male was found beached and dead near Dartford bridge two days later on 14 September. Initial examination of the body suggested death had been by starvation, without any explanation of why this had occurred. Experts suggested that such events as these indicated the expansion of the areas colonised by humpbacks.