Published 13:50 IST, June 2nd 2020
Canada: Rare humpback whale spotted in St. Lawrence River, see pic
Canada witnessed a beluga in the Old Port in 2012, a minke whale as well over a few years ago, and more frequently seals also ventured to Montreal.
- World News
- 3 min read
A sighting of a rare humpback whale in Montreal, Canada that reached by way of the St. Lawrence River has shocked the authorities and the Canadian people. The whale was spotted underneath the Pont de Québec, earlier this week, swimming upstream as its video was shot and shared online. In first-ever, the unusual mammal was spotted near the Jacques-Cartier Bridge with its fins upward, swimming in the river.
A coordinator for the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Network, Robert Michaud, was quoted saying, the moment is astonishing and unusual. He added, as far as local marine biologists were aware, this was the first time ever a humpback whale made its way into Montreal waters. Canada witnessed a beluga in the Old Port in 2012, a minke whale as well over a few years ago, and more frequently seals also ventured to Montreal, Michaud said. As the whale surfaced in the water, flapping gigantic tail, gasping for air then splashing back in the waters, several onlookers as well as photographers gathered near the waterfront to witness the mighty creature, as per local media reports. The animal was presumably heading west, it said.
Speaking about the possibility of the mammoth fish landing underneath the Montreal bridge, Michaud, reportedly said that the authorities were clueless as to why the creature made the long journey from the oceans. Further, he added, the fish could be in search of food or lost its way following other fish. Humans, whales and land mammals, sometimes they are vagrants that go in unusual places and one has to understand that whales do that, he stressed. These journeys are usually a series of mistakes, Michaud said, adding, but what is sure is that this animal doesn't belong to this habitat.
GREMM asked boaters to be 100 meters away
“A humpback whale, also known as a humpback whale, swims in front of the city. Rare opportunity to observe a whale from the shore here, respecting public health instructions. If you are on the water, keep more than 100m,” The Groupe de recherche et d’education sur le mammiferes marins (GREMM) wrote on Twitter. The group’s experts were on the water along with Quebec’s marine mammal emergency network (RQUMM) and Fisheries and Oceans Canada to document the situation, as per local media reports. Federal agents ensured that all boats, as well as people, were at least 100 meters from the whale at all times, and boaters were issued the advisory to avoid approaching the creature.
(Image Credit: Twitter/ Réseau québécois d'urgences pour les mammifères marins)
Updated 13:50 IST, June 2nd 2020