For the second time in just two years, a whale is found in the Montreal region, was able to confirm The duty. This time, it’s a minke whale, a species that is normally observed more than 450 kilometers downstream from the Jacques-Cartier bridge.
The minke whale is a cetacean that can measure about nine to ten meters as an adult, but the one that was seen between Île Sainte-Hélène and Île Notre-Dame on Sunday and Monday could possibly be a juvenile.
He was standing in an area of strong currents, which could eventually exhaust the animal. This is confirmed by the scientific director of the Group for Research and Education on Marine Mammals, Robert Michaud.
The animal would be in good physical condition, but it is now very far from its natural habitat. For the moment, no intervention is planned, since scientists are assessing the situation of this lost whale. It is not known if it would be able to feed in the area.
This species of baleen whale is very frequently observed in the St. Lawrence estuary, more than 450 kilometers from Montreal. Individuals have also been seen in recent weeks in the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park.
This is the second time in less than two years that a large cetacean has been found in the Montreal area. In May 2020, a young female humpback whale spent several days in the area. For a little over a week, it attracted hundreds of curious people every day, who came to observe it near the Quai de l’Horloge. In particular, they were able to see her perform dozens of spectacular jumps out of the water.
The humpback whale that caused quite a stir in 2020 in Montreal finally died following a “sudden event”, according to the cetacean’s necropsy report. Even if the trail of a collision with a ship in the St. Lawrence Seaway remains very plausible, the scientists who analyzed the case could not confirm this hypothesis.