Featured Image Credit: Whale Stewardship Project
By Jessica Kittel
Turns out, beluga whales might not always have the best sense of direction. Nor are they always particularly motivated or able to get themselves out of less than ideal situations.
A two-to-three-year-old beluga whale was recently rescued after stranding himself in the St. Lawrence Estuary, located just up the Nepisiguit River in New Brunswick, Canada.
Experts assume he stranded himself after swimming upriver (likely following some fish) during an abnormally high tide and was unable to make his way back out after the tide receded. While Belugas are capable of surviving in freshwater, they’re certainly not meant to make it their long-term residence.
Belugas are also notoriously social animals, normally found in pods with other belugas. This individual was living a very solitary life, segregated from the rest of his beluga friends.
Locals and authorities began to grow concerned for this beluga whale when it became obvious that he wasn’t showing any signs of leaving on his own accord. Luckily for him, a multi-organization and bi-national group was compiled to devise an escape plan.
This group included (but was not limited to) the Shedd Aquarium, the Vancouver aquarium, the University of Montreal, and Fisheries and Oceans Canada. These organizations did not take the assignment lightly. Everything about the mission was strategically planned and calculated taking the belugas safety and human safety into consideration.
The end result was a multi-step process that ended up taking just under six hours all together. The first step was to herd the beluga into a net and onto a stretcher. The whale was then transported via truck to the airport where he was loaded onto a plane. He was flown to Riviere-du-Loup in Quebec where he was put on a boat. He was finally released at a location with other belugas in the area. He has since been seen hanging out with three other young belugas. I bet he’s telling them all about his crazy adventures!