The Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network: case in progress

October 12 2007: a St. Lawrence beluga whale is present in the Saguenay River, beyond its typical range.

Recent developments

  • 31 October 2007: Still no sign of Dl 247. A team made up of GREMM and Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park employees patrolled the Saguenay Fjord from Tadoussac to Leste Cape today. They came across several groups of beluga whales, however Dl 247 was not among them. Observation conditions deteriorated late in the morning. Search efforts will come to an end when, on Thursday and Friday, a land-based observer verifies the area frequented by the beluga whale before its disappearance.

    GREMM researchers will keep an eye out during regular monitoring of this population next summer. They may spot Dl 247 where it was normally observed since 1991: in the Saguenay and on the edges of the mouth of the Fjord. Its carcass may possibly wash up in the coming days or weeks. A post-mortem examination would be extremely useful from a scientific point of view. We therefore invite the general public-who may spot the beluga whale near Chicoutimi, or a carcass anywhere in the region-to contact the Network at 1-877-722-5346.

    GREMM would like to underline the remarkable effort of Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network partners Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Centre québecois pour la santé des animaux sauvages (CQSAS), the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park and the St. Lawrence National Institute of Ecotoxicology. Their expert consultations, media coverage, potential interventions planning and monitoring in the field were greatly appreciated. Furthermore, a special thanks goes out to Mr. Gérald Mercier, a fisherman who first reported the incident to the Network Call Centre. Day in, day out, his precious collaboration was essential in monitoring the situation.

  • On Saturday, October 27, our observer, Mr. Mercier, reported that after a detailed search of the area that had been the its hangout for the past two weeks, the beluga whale had disappeared.

    The most probable hypothesis is that Dl 247 took advantage of the strong tides on Friday and Saturday to swim downstream.

    A team composed of GREMM and Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park personnel patrolled the area between Saint-Fulgence and Chicoutimi from aboard a boat, and both shores upstream of the Chicoutimi Bridge on foot and in a car. No sign of the beluga whale.

    Other patrols will take place over the coming week in an attempt to spot Dl 247 in the River or Fjord. The general public is invited to keep an eye out and to report any sighting of the animal, alive or dead, by contacting the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network call centre at the following number: 1-877-722-5346.

Case summary

On Saturday, October 13, the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network Call Centre received information concerning the presence of a beluga whale near the Shipshaw Dam in the Saguenay River, upstream from the typical St. Lawrence beluga whale range. This is a first, if not a very rare, case. Due to the lay of the land, the interplay of the tides and the characteristic beluga whale behaviour in similar circumstances, it is highly unlikely that this whale will leave the area on its own. It is quite thin, and it is very likely that this condition predates its arrival in the Saguenay River.

Dl 247

The GREMM (Group for Research and Education on Marine Mammals), which is currently conducting long-term research on the St. Lawrence population, has managed to identify this beluga whale. Code number Dl 247, a male that was identified for the first time in 1991, is at least 30 years of age. Dl 247 belongs to a network of male beluga whales that regularly frequent the Saguenay Fjord.

What is being done to help this animal?

After consulting with experts who work with similar networks elsewhere in the world, partners of the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network have concluded that it is preferable not to intervene directly for this animal in the present context. The beluga whale is in very bad condition and scientific experts estimate that it has little chance of recovery. Any direct intervention, such as an attempt to move him for example, would impose a significant amount of stress that could exacerbate his present condition. In this case, it has been deemed best to let nature take its course. For now, the option of euthanizing the whale has been set aside. The natural capacity of marine mammals to recover is surprising. It is not impossible that the whale, left in peace, could survive this adventure.

This decision is consistent with Network guidelines. The Network includes governmental institutions and private Quebec-based groups working with marine mammals, such as Fisheries and Oceans Canada, The Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park, CQSAS (Centre québécois pour la santé des animaux sauvages) and GREMM.

Network guidelines that justify this decision

Guidelines were established during the 2002 workshop on marine mammal interventions that led to the creation of the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network. These extensive consultations included government ministries, government agencies and private organisations involved in these types of interventions in Quebec, along with invited experts in the fields of ethics and emergency intervention for marine mammals.

The network will intervene:

  • When humans have caused the animal's situation;
  • When the animal belongs to an endangered species and there are chances for its recovery; and
  • When the intervention will lead to the acquisition of scientific data without prejudice to the animal's well being.

    Costs, logistics and the security of field operatives are also taken into consideration.

    • The next steps for Dl 247

    Fisheries agents have been on site since October 23 to ensure that the beluga whale is not disturbed. Beluga whales are protected under Canada's Species at Risk Act (SARA), which states that they are not to be disturbed. We are therefore asking people to avoid navigating in the area, if possible, not to approach the beluga whale or to feed it. The additional stress could prove fatal for this whale.

    A Network team will monitor the situation; observers will be dispatched and veterinarians will evaluate the animal's state of health. Based on these reports, the Network team will re-evaluate the situation and the line of conduct on a weekly basis.

    If the beluga whale dies, a necropsy will be conducted in order to determine the cause of its feeble condition. This examination will be carried out within the context of the beluga whale carcass recovery programme, a scientific study that began in 1982 and is presently headed by Fisheries and Oceans Canada in collaboration with the University of Montreal's Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and the St. Lawrence National Institute of Ecotoxicology.

    If the animal becomes stranded, it will be a sign that it is very weak and is condemned to die. There will be no attempt to return it to the water, however it will be euthanised.

    If the animal's state improves markedly, the option of a direct intervention to help it leave this portion of the River will be re-evaluated.

    To contact a spokesperson for the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network for a media interview, please communicate with Véronik de la Chenelière at the following number: 418-235-4701.