An Oceanic Farewell: After 140 days of intensive care and love, \"Haitang,\" a short-finned pilot whale, made a splashy return to the deep blue off the coast of Sanya City on Sunday. 🌊🐳
Back in January, tourists strolling along Haitang District's beach stumbled upon a distressing sight—a stranded whale struggling for life. Haitang was found with multiple injuries and was too weak to swim on his own. 💔
\"When we first saw him, his vital signs were poor, and he couldn't swim independently,\" shared Xiong Chunlin, a veterinarian at the Sanya Haichang Animal Conservation Center. \"Rescuing and successfully releasing stranded short-finned pilot whales is incredibly rare.\" 🩺
But Haitang's story is one of hope and resilience. With the dedicated efforts of technicians and volunteers from the Blue Ribbon Ocean Conservation Association, he received around-the-clock care. Over the months, Haitang grew from 3.6 meters to an impressive 3.96 meters in length, and his weight soared to 500 kilograms! 🐋💪
Not only did he recover physically, but Haitang also regained his natural instincts. He demonstrated the ability to hunt independently and showed recognition of his fellow marine mammals. 🐟🤝
On his release day, Haitang was transported 70 nautical miles offshore to waters 500 meters deep—far from busy shipping lanes and into an area known for short-finned pilot whale activity. \"This location increases his chances of reuniting with his kind,\" explained Pu Bingmei, secretary-general of the Blue Ribbon Ocean Conservation Association. 🌐📍
As Haitang dove into the vast ocean, there was a wave of emotion among the rescue team. It's not every day that a stranded whale gets a second chance at life. \"Seeing him swim away was the ultimate reward,\" said Xiong, with a hopeful smile. 😊🌊
Haitang's journey reminds us of the impact we can have when we come together for the sake of our planet's incredible wildlife. Here's to many more sunrises and deep-sea adventures for Haitang! 🌅🐳
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
