Germans divided over stranded humpback whale's fate and rescue efforts
More than half of Germans are emotionally invested in the fate of the humpback whale stranded on the Baltic coast. In an Insa poll conducted for Bild am Sonntag, 53 percent of respondents said they were concerned about the animal, while 36 percent said they were not. Eleven percent did not give an answer.
When asked how to handle the whale, however, only a relative majority supported further rescue attempts. Forty-five percent of those surveyed backed additional measures to save the animal, while 37 percent opposed intervention, arguing that the whale should be allowed to die naturally. Five percent advocated euthanizing the whale, such as through controlled detonation, and 13 percent did not respond.
A proposal to erect a monument for the whale met with broad public opposition. Forty-five percent rejected the idea, 28 percent supported it, and 27 percent had no opinion. Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania's Environment Minister Till Backhaus (SPD) had previously suggested a memorial for the whale, nicknamed Timmy.
The poll also revealed divided opinions on Backhaus's handling of the whale crisis. Twenty-four percent rated his actions as good, 34 percent as poor, and 42 percent declined to comment.
The survey for Bild am Sonntag was conducted by the Insa opinion research institute, which polled 1,005 people between April 23 and April 24, 2026.
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