Why go to the Caribbean when you have the St. Lawrence?

Observers are simply astonished to report the continued presence of minke whales, humpbacks and fin whales once again this week. Shouldn’t these whales have already set out on their migration?

Every fall, all the species that frequent the St. Lawrence, with the exception of belugas which reside here year-round, undertake a migration of hundreds of kilometres. Most species leave the relatively narrow estuary en route to ice-free spans of ocean or the tepid waters of the Caribbean.

So what are two large dark-backed whales doing off the coast of Godbout on December 12? A cetacean may decide to linger in a given feeding ground for any number of reasons. If it is a young individual or one that is not yet sexually mature, there is no urgency to seek out a partner in its breeding grounds. It is therefore possible that the opportunity to continue feeding outweighs the call of migration. A young individual may also be inexperienced and not migrate at the same rate as most of its peers. Again, prey availability and ice cover (or lack thereof) might play a role.

Perhaps this explains the abundance of whales off the coast of Les Bergeronnes on December 14. Renaud Pintiaux observes a minke whale near the rocks, while large white spouts catch his attention farther out. Then emerges the long grey back of a fin whale in the foreground. The animal is heading toward Tadoussac. Renaud aims his binoculars toward the horizon. He tallies three more fin whales. Beyond them, a pair of humpbacks. But the real thrill comes from a humpback that approaches close enough to shore that Renaud is able to take a photo. Given the wind and the distance, the images are not super crisp, but they are good enough for GREMM’s research team to identify the individual: it’s H944. This humpback whale was often seen this fall, and regularly in the company of H930. Was this other whale too far offshore to be photographed?