February 2019
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2019 / 02 / 21
Marine mammals on the ice and humpbacks in the Caribbean
Off the Gaspé Peninsula town of Newport, 50 or so seals bask on the ice. To observe them, it’s best to have binoculars, as they are 4 or 5 km away. “I’d say they’re probably harp seals,...
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2019 / 02 / 21
Humpback Entangled in 2017 Spotted Alive!
The resilience of whales never ceases to amaze us! By analyzing photos taken in the summer of 2018, the Mingan Island Cetacean Study (MICS) team succeeded in identifying whale H710, a.k.a. Snowball. T...
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2019 / 02 / 21
A Seventh Calf, But Not a Baby Boom
Since the beginning of the right whale calving season, 7 newborns have been observed. Although the announcement of a seventh birth is encouraging, it is unfortunately still premature to talk about a b...
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2019 / 02 / 18
Correlation Confirmed Between Military Sonar and Beaked Whale Mass Strandings
Noise pollution is a growing threat for whales, notably for the beluga population of the St. Lawrence, which is affected by the frequent passing of commercial vessels. Elsewhere in the world, such as ...
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2019 / 02 / 15
Godbout is where the action is!
A tiny village of just over 300 inhabitants, Godbout is located in the Côte-Nord (North Shore) region between Baie-Comeau and Baie-Trinité. This municipality is best known for its ferry that connect...
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2019 / 02 / 08
Climate bill to give whales a little boost?
A few days before Christmas, the Pact for Transition offered a “climate anti-deficit” bill to Quebec Premier François Legault. This bill aims to force present and future governments to respect Qu...
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2019 / 02 / 08
February Blues
It was a perfect day for whale-watching. Light winds, calm sea, light conditions that were neither blinding nor too dim. Off the coast of Gallix, a spout rises high and straight, followed by a long, d...
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2019 / 02 / 08
Right Whales: Similar Measures for 2019
The North Atlantic right whale protection measures for 2019 have been announced, and will include measures better suited to the fishing industry, as well as constant monitoring efforts similar to last...
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2019 / 02 / 06
Do whales have baby teeth?
Humans have two generations of teeth: deciduous teeth (from the Latin “to fall”) – also called “baby teeth” – and permanent teeth. Known as diphyodontia, this phenomenon is...
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2019 / 02 / 06
How do they determine the age of whales?
Estimating the age of marine mammals is more complex than one might think. Few reliable techniques exist to determine the age of whales, at least in the case of living specimens. Yet it is an essentia...