The Whale News Network is a weekly compilation of the "whale-watching" experience in the St. Lawrence Estuary and Gulf. Seasoned observers provide you with their weekly wildlife reports.

3 July 2008, vol. 12 n^o24

Harp seal migration

Through the winter and into spring, groups numbering in the dozens and sometimes in the hundreds were visible in the Estuary. Yet, this week only a few scattered individuals poked their moustaches and little black heads above the surface. Where have they gone? They're on their way to Greenland! Harp seals are particularly abundant off the Mingan Archipelago; there have been reports of 500 to 1000, and maybe even more of them in this region. Harp seals are estimated at 5.5 million individuals, by far the most numerous of all pinniped species in Atlantic Canada. The St. Lawrence population mates and gives birth on the icepack in the Gulf from late February to mid-March. Early in the summer, they return to their feeding grounds further north as far as the icepack near Greenland, living up to their Latin name Pagophilus groenlandicus, which means, “who love the ice”. These seals feed essentially on small, 10 to 20-cm-long fish known as capelin, as well as krill, shrimp and squid.

Blue whales and krill around the Gaspé

Whale watchers have noted blue whales among the large rorqual whales frequenting the Gaspé area. The mobile Mingan Island Cetacean Study (MICS) team, presently stationed in Gaspé, is specialized in the study and identification of the largest animal in the sea. So far they have identified at least a dozen individuals blue whales in the area. There is also a lot of krill at the surface. The term krill includes several dozen crustacean species measuring a few centimetres in length. This is the blue whale's main food source. One blue whale can ingest from two to four tonnes of krill per day.

The great whales of the Estuary

Research teams are hard at work in the Estuary, specifically at the head of the Laurentian Channel. GREMM has counted a total of seven fin whales, including a cow/calf pair. The well-known female humpback whale, Tic Tac Toe, has also arrived in the Tadoussac area. With the large “X” marking the underside of its tail, this whale is quite easy to identify. Aramis, her calf that was at her side last year, is nowhere to be seen. It is now an independent animal.

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