Animal rights groups have reported that the white whale known as Hvaldimir, suspected to have been trained by the Russian navy, has died from multiple gunshots.
NOAH and One Whale, two animal rights organizations, announced today that they have filed a complaint with the Norwegian police, requesting a criminal investigation following the discovery of Hvaldimir’s carcass drifting off the coast of Risavika, southwestern Norway, last weekend.
“There are numerous bullet wounds on the whale’s body,” Regina Crosby Haug, head of One Whale, said after examining Hvaldimir. One Whale was established to monitor the white whale, which had gained fame in Norway.
Siri Martinsen, director of NOAH, also issued a statement expressing alarm over the whale’s injuries and the possibility of a criminal act. “This is truly shocking,” Martinsen said. “It is crucial for the police to act swiftly.”
The Norwegian Veterinary Institute examined the whale’s body on September 2 and is expected to release a report on the cause of death within three weeks.
Marine Mind, a non-governmental organization that has tracked Hvaldimir for years, reported discovering the whale’s carcass on the afternoon of August 31 but could not yet determine the cause of death. “We see signs, but it is too early to say what they mean,” said Sebastian Strand, director of Marine Mind.
Hvaldimir was estimated to be about 15-20 years old, while the lifespan of white whales is 40-60 years.
Hvaldimir was first seen in the Finnmark region of northeastern Norway in 2019. At that time, Norwegian authorities discovered it was wearing a harness with a camera attachment and a plastic tag marked “Equipment St. Petersburg.”
Jorgen Ree Wiig, a marine biologist working with the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries, suggested that the whale appeared to be accustomed to human interaction, hypothesizing that it had been trained by the Russian navy and escaped from captivity.
Signs on the harness and rumors of Moscow’s white whale training program led many Norwegians to speculate that the whale could be a “Russian spy.” This resulted in the whale being nicknamed Hvaldimir, a blend of “hval” (whale in Norwegian) and Vladimir, hinting at a connection to Russia.
Russian officials have yet to comment on the matter, though Russian media quoted an officer mocking the notion, suggesting that the Russian military would not be foolish enough to leave a phone number on an animal trained for secret operations.
