AFP/Buenos Aires
A disoriented whale that surprised onlookers by surfacing in the middle of a bustling marina in Buenos Aires is slowly finding its way back toward the sea, officials said yesterday.
The small minke whale turned up on Monday amid the yachts docked in Puerto Madero, the Argentine capital’s upscale waterfront neighbourhood.
It had apparently strayed off course, leaving the Atlantic Ocean and swimming up the River Plate estuary into a canal that serves the marina.
As hundreds of curious passersby gathered to watch the whale surface and spout water just off the docks, navy officials tried to lead the animal out of fresh water and back to the sea.
They lost sight of the whale early yesterday morning, but then spotted it again near the entrance to the river, officials said.
“The whale is currently at the exit of the Buenos Aires port. We don’t know its health status, but it’s in the right area to swim into the access canal toward the river,” police spokesman Walter Melo told AFP.
Officials have been working with marine biologists to help the eight- to nine-metre (26- to 30-foot) whale find its way to the sea.
The stranded whale is seen at Puerto Madero harbour in Buenos Aires.
