This little guy was likely just out for a swim, but then he took a wrong turn. He ended up in a small bay in Newfoundland and wasn't sure how to get back to sea. As though being lost weren’t bad enough, he then became stranded in the shallow water. Three men were nearby and ready to help. What might have been a tragedy, ended up being a story of heroism.
Mark Chippett, Marcel Cooke and Ryan Peddle took it upon themselves to make sure this whale made it safely home. They kept a close watch, hoping the whale would be able to wiggle himself free. Once it became clear that he wasn’t going to make it out on his own, they waded into the water with slabs of wood to help. They were able to wedge the whale out of the sand and send it on its merry way.
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It’s hard to know for sure, but based on the images and a quick look through the Whales of Newfoundland and Labrador this may be a pilot whale. This whale is distinguishable by its pot-shaped head, which you can see bobbing in and out of the water in the video below.
Most people don’t realize it, but all dolphins are whales. They are simply their own family of whales. Both the Killer whale and the Pilot whale are members of this family, too. The Killer whale is technically the largest known dolphin. The Pilot whale is the second largest. They usually travel in huge groups that can number in the hundred and are known for mass standings. This makes it all the more understandable that the little whale became lost and stranded, but doesn’t explain why he was all alone.
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Luckily, he wasn’t truly alone. The nearby humans had his back.