The number of humpback whales, the whale species that was found stranded on Öland, has increased sharply and will soon return to levels we did not see until the 19th century, says Tom Arnbom, marine and species expert at WWF.
"From having been almost endangered in some areas of the world, the humpback whales are back to the numbers they were before the whaling began in the 19th century," he says.
And with more whales in our waters, we will see more on our beaches in Sweden as well.
- Can expect that there will be more strandings, without a doubt.
It is incredibly gratifying, but it also means that if there are more whales, more will also end up along our coasts.
The reason why humpback whales have increased so sharply is the agreement reached in the 1980s to stop commercial whaling, says Tom Arnbom.
- This is one of our great successful nature conservation efforts, that the whales will return.
In the 1980s, the International Whaling Commission concluded an agreement with several countries on a break in commercial whaling.
Despite the fact that some countries opposed the halt to whaling and left the agreement, several of the baleen whales in our seas are increasing, with a few exceptions.
See more in the clip above.