Swedish-born London theater designer Sigyn Stenqvist, 35, watched from Battersea Bridge as the rescue operation swung into action.
"I'm really touched to see how many people have turned out and the amount of effort that's being made in trying to save it," she said.
"It's a lot of work for just one animal. I can't think of many other creatures that would attract so much attention. It must be because it's so big and rare."
The whale calf is thought to have become separated from its mother in the lower Thames, where the sighting of another, larger bottlenose whale was reported.
The youngster became stressed and disoriented, swimming up and down the river and injuring itself in shallow water where it was briefly stranded.
Last Hope
Attempts to coax the whale downstream using boats failed, and the decision was made to capture it.
Growing up to 35 feet long (10.6 meters long), the northern bottlenose whale is a deep-diving species that can reach depths of 4,400 feet (1,340 meters) and suvive for more than an hour between breaths. The whale's prey includes squid, cuttlefish, herring, and sea stars, or starfish.
Protected since 1977, the northern bottlenose population is estimated at 40,000 in the whale's habitat, the North Atlantic Ocean. (See National Geographic magazine photos on the evolution of whales.)
The species is rarely seen in the United Kingdom's coastal waters. Experts say the London whales may have strayed up the Thames because they were ill or chasing fish upriver.
Meanwhile some animal welfare groups say that navy sonar or explosions at a coastal military site operated by a defense contractor may have disoriented the whale.
The Zoological Society of London says the autopsy currently underway should give researchers a better idea of why the stricken mammal became lost and died.
The carcass is being checked for damage to the skin and internal organs, including echo-response areas of the brain. Blubber samples are also being sent for analysis.
Autopsy results are expected later this week.
After the autopsy, the whale's bones will be donated to London's Natural History Museum for further study.
Rare Visit
The last time a bottlenose whale was reported in the Thames was in 1899.
The Times of London then reported that a whale had become stranded on the river shore in London, where it "blew furiously and turned half-a-dozen somersaults, injuring itself on the stones, and colouring the river with its blood."
While last weekend's events had a similarly unhappy ending, those involved with the rescue attempt say the whale's death wasn't in vain.
"So many people came out and showed their support," Jepson, the veterinary surgeon, said.
"There are many children who may remember seeing this bottlenose whale in London, and in the future I hope they may become marine-mammal enthusiasts and conservationists."
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