Ondine
Beluga
Adopted by the region of Rivière-du-Loup
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ID number
DL0116
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Sex
Female
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Year of birth
Before 1974
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Known Since
1990
Distinctive traits
Ondine’s marks are numerous. First, there are the three deep scars in her dorsal crest. There’s also the small scar just behind her blowhole, visible mainly from the left flank.
Life history
When we first met in 1990, Ondine was already white. She would therefore have been born before 1974.
Her small size and the presence of a newborn alongside Ondine indicated that she was a female from the community on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River.
Ondine is probably a fairly old female beluga. Regular observations up to 1995 enabled us to determine that she was a female belonging to the south shore community. Surprisingly, she was almost always seen with Canadine ; female belugas, unlike males, don’t usually form lasting associations with other individuals. In 1994, Ondine was accompanied by a calf, and in 1995 by a newborn calf.
Observations history in the Estuary
Years in which the animal was not observed Years in which the animal was observed
Latest news
In 2010, surprise : Ondine is photographed in baie des Chaleurs! A few weeks later, she was back at the head of the Laurentian Channel, a bit thinned out. It wasn’t until August 2012 that we heard from her again : several reports of an apparently unwell beluga drifting between Les Escoumins and Les Bergeronnes reached the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network. On August 15, GREMM Research Director Robert Michaud went to the Marine Environment Discovery Centre in Les Escoumins to document one of these reports. He confirmed that it was Ondine, and that she seemed to be in a bad way.
Sponsor
The region of Rivière-du-Loup adopted Ondine (1993).