People are warned not to approach the animal due to the risk of explosion.
People are warned not to approach the animal due to the risk of explosion.
A dead sperm whale has been spotted off the island of Sylt. The carcass was towed by mussel fishermen to the port of Hörnum on Saturday and secured there, according to the Wadden Sea Protection Station.

The male animal, which is up to 16 meters long, has reportedly been dead for some time. Katharina Weinberg from the Wadden Sea Protection Station told dpa that it was not yet possible to say anything about the cause of death. The young animal is expected to be examined more closely by experts on Monday and then transported away. The media had previously reported.

The sanctuary warned against approaching the stinking carcass, even by boat. "Because of the decomposition gases, it is lying high in the water and has apparently already burst open on its back," it says. "Under the pressure of the gases, it could also explode in other places." In addition, according to the Wadden Sea Protection Station, carcasses generally pose a risk of infection.


Sperm whales are the largest toothed whales in the world, measuring up to more than 20 meters in length and weighing over 50 tons in some cases. According to the protection station, they often stay under water for an hour and a half while hunting and can dive several thousand meters deep. If sperm whales stray into the shallow North Sea, they often become stranded here - as was the case most recently in 2016, when 30 sperm whales died here, 12 of them in the German Wadden Sea.

Sperm whale tracking system is designed for the deep sea

Researchers who examined the dead whales in 2016 assume that there was no single reason for the strandings. They believe it is very likely that a combination of different environmental factors caused the sperm whales to stray so close to the coast. The researchers found no evidence of disease or weakening.

What is known, however, is that once the whales get into the shallower fringes of the North Sea, their tracking system no longer works as well. This is because sperm whales, which normally dive to depths of up to 2000 meters, orient themselves by sound via an echo sounder - a system that is actually designed for the deep sea.