‘Thames Dolphin’ dies after becoming beached on foreshore in Wandsworth

A much-loved dolphin that was first spotted in the Thames nine days ago has died.

The so-called 'Thames Dolphin' was found dead after becoming beached on a foreshore of the river.

The animal, first spotted on October 30, got into difficulty near Wandsworth Bridge and was spotted struggling on land.

Michael White, a roofer who works at a building site on the Thames, said he and his colleagues saw the mammal become stuck on Monday evening.

“We were at work just on the north side of Wandsworth Bridge and saw it beached on the bank,” he told the Standard.

“I phoned a number given for stranded animals and reported what had happened. I explained to them that it was beached in shallow water.

“But they did not do anything about it so when we came back on Tuesday morning it was dead.”

Mr White said he “can’t know 100 per cent” that it is the same animal spotted swimming around but believes it to be so.

His story was confirmed by the Met's marine team, who had previously tweeted pictures of the animal.

They wrote on Tuesday: "Sad to tell you that a dead Common #Dolphin was washed up on the foreshore at Wandsworth yesterday.

"Our friends at @ZSLMarine will carry out tests to determine why it was in fresh water. There may be others so keep an eye out & report any sightings."

​On Monday, animal welfare experts said they were monitoring the animal – which was said by some to be a Common Dolphin and others a porpoise – but were not concerned for its welfare.

The RSPCA said it was liaising with the British Divers Marine Life Rescue, which was monitoring the aquatic mammal.

A spokesman for the BDMLR said on Wednesday that they were waiting for the post mortem to be carried out before they could ascertain how it died.

“We did get a call to the Port of London Authority on Monday,” he confirmed. “They went out in a boat to try and find it but they could not find it – so that may have been the same one. We do not know for sure.”

The animal had been seen near Putney Bridge, Kew and Richmond last week after it swam 40 miles up the Thames and was spotted again by officers from the Met’s marine team on Sunday.

The Marine Policing Unit tweeted that they were “taking care not to get too close” and requested that people do not approach the mammal in case it leads to it beaching itself.