Another whale dies in the Kent stretch of the River Thames

The whale was spotted in the Thames near Gravesend on Friday morning

A dead whale has been found in the River Thames just over a week after a humpback whale seen swimming in the same stretch of water died.

The Port of London confirmed the whale was spotted in the river at Denton near Gravesend on Friday morning, before it was lifted out by the authority.

A spokesman said early indications suggested it was a fin whale.

A humpback whale first surfaced in the Thames two weekends ago, but it was found dead on mudflats on 8 October.

"Benny the beluga" was regularly seen in the River Thames at the end of last year

It was thought to have found its way into the river because of a navigational error, possibly during the recent high spring tides.

A post-mortem examination concluded it had been hit by a ship, although it was not clear if a wound on the juvenile female was inflicted before or after its death.

Last year a beluga whale, nicknamed "Benny", survived in the Thames for three months and was regularly spotted swimming and feeding in the Kent stretch during November and December.

It is thought to have headed back to the coastal waters of the Arctic Ocean early in the new year.

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