The Guardian

Mystery of the missing whale: is it a Russian spy or child therapist?

Beluga with Russian harness found off Norwegian coast – but no one has publicly announced they’ve lost a whale
The beluga whale with a Russian military strap swimming off the north Norwegian coast. Photograph: Joergen Ree Wiig/AP

When Morten Vikeby saw reports that a “spy whale” from Russia had been found off the Norwegian coast, he immediately phoned his old fishery newspaper Fiskeribladet with a tip.

The amiable beluga reminded him not of a spy, he said, but of a “therapy whale” he’d seen a decade ago at a diving centre in northern Russia.

That whale, named Semyon, lived in a watery enclosure in

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Guardian

The Guardian5 min read
Sara M Saleh: ‘I Want To Know The System And Its Flaws, So I Know How To Undo It, Transcend It’
Sara M Saleh is bright against the picture of a rather dreary day. The poet’s blue headwrap and coloured frock are stark beneath grey clouds rolling overhead as are her white sneakers stepping through freshly moistened mud. We meet after a night of i
The Guardian4 min read
‘Perfect Linearity’: Why Botticelli’s Drawing Abilities Remain One-of-a-kind
Throughout the Renaissance, drawings became an integral part of the massive paintings and frescoes that have long been associated with that period. Among other things, they were a way for artists to get a feel for how to arrange the space of a compos
The Guardian7 min read
Gwyneth Paltrow: Is Her Life A Work Of Performance Art?
Ripping to shreds Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop gift list has been a media preoccupation for years now, to the point that the website even titles it, “The ridiculous but awesome gift guide”. Still, even those not driven by well-documented animus towards Pal

Related Books & Audiobooks