A German rescue team used two excavators Thursday to try to save a beached humpback whale, digging a channel into a sandbank to help it re-enter deeper waters.

The 10-metre (33-foot) long sea mammal was first spotted on Monday close to Niendorf near the northern city of Luebeck, setting off a frantic effort to save its life.

Teams have driven boats near the whale to create large waves to try and help it float free, and on Tuesday a suction dredger was used to remove packed sand beneath the whale, all to no avail.

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Rescuers managed at one point to rotate the animal so that its head faced deeper water, but it then turned back to its original position.

On Thursday morning, rescuers began using two excavators to dig a channel in front of the whale.

Marine biologist Marc Lehmann examined the stricken creature on Thursday morning, media reports said.

“He’s responding, both his eyes are open, he’s vocalising, but he’s terribly unsteady and he’s scared,” Lehmann said.

Even if successfully freed, the whale would still have a long struggle ahead, experts said.

Since the Baltic Sea is not its natural habitat, it would need to make its way back to the North Sea and then on to the Atlantic — a tough journey for an already weakened animal.

“It has to find the way out again, and it is not entirely certain that the humpback whale’s navigation system is designed for that,” vet and whale expert Jan Hermann said.