The effort to rescue ‘Timmy’ the humpback whale just took a risky turn

April 30, 20262 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAmA major humpback whale rescue effort is attempting to do something extraordinaryRescuers had called off the effort to save “Timmy,” a humpback whale that had stranded in the Baltic Sea last month. But now a last-ditch attempt to move the creature by barge is underwayBy K. R. Callaway edited by Claire CameronAfter more than a month in the Baltic Sea, a stranded whale that’s captured the public’s hearts is headed to safer waters. Frank Molter/AFP via Getty ImagesFor more than a month, a humpback whale nicknamed Timmy has been stranded in the Baltic Sea off Germany. In early April rescuers called off the effort to save the creature, which had repeatedly become stuck on sandbanks and seemed in bad physical shape. But now, in a last-ditch attempt to save the whale, a team has loaded Timmy onto a specialized barge to essentially drag it to the North Sea. The International Whaling Commission, a global body that manages whale conservation, has called the effort “inadvisable.” Whether Timmy will survive is still uncertain, but some experts hope the story will inspire people to do more to protect whales.“My guess would be that it’ll