Yahoo News 18 Aug 08;
Fears were growing Tuesday for the survival chances of a lost baby humpback whale who tried to suckle from an Australian yacht in the belief it was its mother.
Wildlife experts used the yacht to lure the calf out of Pittwater bay near Sydney's Palm Beach on Monday, hoping it would link up with other whales passing by on their annual breeding migration.
But early on Tuesday the calf was reportedly spotted back in Pittwater, apparently having failed to find either its own mother or a surrogate, Department of National Parks and Wildlife spokesman Chris McIntosh told AFP.
"We successfully lured the calf about a kilometre out to sea -- probably the first time that's been done using a yacht as a surrogate mother," he said.
"Later we saw whales a bit further offshore and there was a slender chance it may have linked up with them, but this morning we have got reports that it has returned to the western shores of Pittwater."
Mcintosh said the calf risked running out of energy through lack of food, being attacked by sharks, simply dying of hunger or beaching itself.
Rangers were searching for the calf, which showed no sign of injury and was most likely rejected by its mother, and euthanasia might have to be an option if it became stranded, McIntosh said.
"We've consistently said it was a slim chance that it might link up with its mother or other whales but the reality is that in the wild, for various reasons, mothers sometimes reject their young," he said.
The calf is estimated to be two months old, about five metres (yards) long and to weigh five tonnes, but it would still rely primarily on its mother's milk and its survival chances are seen as poor.
"Looking at its behaviour, the way it was nuzzling up to yachts would indicate it was primarily still suckling," McIntosh said.
"It really was trying to suckle, just below the waterline and against the keel, with its head engaged against the boat."
The humpbacks are on the return leg of a remarkable 20,000-kilometre (12,500-mile) annual round trip from the Antarctic to tropical waters to breed, and they can be seen ploughing homewards not far off Sydney's beaches on most days.
