Dolphin lost in Thames found dead, second carcass discovered
The story of the dolphin, which had been spotted several times in the Thames in London since Thursday, captured media attention for several days. This marine mammal entered the Thames for unknown reasons and most likely got lost. Unfortunately, the story does not have a happy ending.
The dolphin was first observed on Thursday, swimming in the Thames between the Putney and Hammersmith bridges in western London. However, it then disappeared.
On Saturday, British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR), a charity organization dedicated to rescuing marine animals, appealed to the public to inform them if they spotted the dolphin. They also urged people to keep their distance and not to approach it, as this could further disorient the mammal.
On Monday morning, around 9:00 AM EST, the body of a dead dolphin was found on the shore near Chelsea Harbour Pier, a pier on the Thames in the western part of London. On Monday afternoon, the newspaper "Evening Standard" reported that another dead dolphin, previously unnoticed, was found in Greenwich, in the eastern part of London.
This marks the fourth and fifth dolphin sightings in London this year. Mary Tester, who is responsible for the Thames at BDMLR, explained on Saturday that while the presence of dolphins in the estuary area of the North Sea is normal, their appearance as far as London is unusual and dangerous for them.
The tester stated that there are various theories regarding why dolphins swim upstream. It could be related to the construction of offshore wind farms, which forces marine mammals to move, or it might be due to the improved water quality in the Thames in recent years, resulting in a greater number of fish and other marine animals that serve as food for dolphins. However, no one has yet determined why these marine mammals appear so far from the sea.
