'Hopes fade' for sperm whale stuck in Thames Estuary

The whale was spotted off the coast of Whitstable

"Hopes are fading" for a sperm whale which might be stuck in the Thames Estuary.

The mammal was spotted about 100m (328ft) off the coast of Whitstable, Kent, at 11:45 GMT.

At 15:00 it was spotted in a shallow tidal channel of the estuary called The Swale.

A spokesman for British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) said the whale was "moving slightly" and medics are monitoring its progress and behaviour.

However, he added: "With the tide now dropping hopes for the animal finding its way back out to deep water are fading."

Sperm whales are not usually found around the UK

At first the whale was thought to be a minke or possibly a humpback, but when photos emerged from a member of public the BDMLR team said it "became clear that it was more likely to be a sperm whale".

They are not usually found around the UK but it is not the first time a whale has swum into its waters.

Benny the beluga became a minor celebrity when it appeared in the River Thames at Gravesend in September 2018. It is believed the whale made its way back out of the estuary in January 2019.

However a humpback whale seen swimming in the Thames in October was found dead on mudflats at Greenhithe some days later.

A dead fin whale was also lifted from the water near Gravesend by the Port of London authority just over a week later after it was hit by a ship.