Baie Sainte-Marguerite: A Day in the Privileged Life of a Research Assistant

A closer look at the project!

The summer of 2024 was my second year as a research assistant at the Group for Research and Education on Marine Mammals (GREMM). Led by GREMM in collaboration with the Marine Mammal Observation Network (MMON) and the Raincoast Conservation Foundation, “Window on Belugas” is a project that has several partners: Sépaq, Parks Canada in the Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park and the Wolastoqiyik Wahsipekuk First Nation. My fieldwork is carried out in one of the parks in the Sépaq network: Parc national du Fjord-du-Saguenay, Baie Sainte-Marguerite sector.

What makes Window on Belugas so special is the unique viewing angle it provides of the animals, as all data are collected using a drone. Notably, the drone-captured images give us a bird’s-eye view of the different behaviours that belugas exhibit below the surface. This unprecedented glimpse into their daily lives is what struck me the most and continues to amaze me to this day. It was by capturing videos by drone that I realized the range of behaviours that is only accessible from above. Which leads to the interpretation activity Window on Belugas: sharing these moments with the public in real time or on demand. Before we get carried away, as I get a rush just writing about our fieldwork, I will instead describe a typical (or rather atypical, as they are all unique) day in the field as part of the Window on Belugas project in Baie Sainte-Marguerite.

Before, during and after

A week or so before venturing out into the field, we have to start evaluating the weather forecast. Which days seem best for flying the drone? This entails checking several variables, including the wind, the chance of precipitation and the tides. Then, on Monday morning, we have to validate our game plan again. Are the days we pencilled in always the most favourable?

On the scheduled day, a team of two research assistants arrives at the office at 8 a.m. to evaluate the weather conditions one more time. If everything appears favourable for a day in the field, we gather our equipment and head to the site. Preparing our gear consists of verifying the condition of the drone and batteries, checking that there are enough printed field sheets, extra water, lunch, batteries for the electric bikes, keys… In short, making sure we don’t forget anything!

In order to minimize the disturbance that the drone might cause the belugas, we have a maximum of two hours to collect our data. During this time, a pilot is responsible for flying the drone while an assistant pilot fills out the field sheet and takes readings. The assistant plays an important role by helping the pilot steer the drone, as this individual must lie under a blanket to eliminate glare from the sun on the controller screen. Spotting belugas from a drone is sometimes just as challenging than with the naked eye! Once we’ve completed our tasks, everything has to be collected and returned to the office to transfer the videos and enter the data.

The biggest challenge of our work at Baie Sainte-Marguerite is the fatigue caused by the heat and the travel, which accumulates over the weeks. Nevertheless, after just two summers, I consider myself fortunate given the observations I have made. Belugas biting one another, males giving each other pelvic thrusts (thereby exposing their phalluses), mother-calf pairs, half-breaches…

One observation in particular that amazed me was that of a small grey individual that was using its head to push a calf riding on the back of another beluga (potentially its mother). He returned several times, trying to dislodge the calf and escort it away. The potential mother always hurried back to stay at the calf’s side. It was fascinating! Another sighting that blew me away was that of a group of young bulls, one of which looked to me like a troublemaker. He was biting the others and giving them pelvic thrusts. Note that there is a lot of anthropomorphism in my interpretation, but it seemed to me that one of the belugas had had enough and head-butted him back. In response, the bully froze and let himself be carried by the current as if the shock had knocked him out. This interaction made me laugh.

Please note that it is strictly forbidden to fly drones over marine mammals in Canada and throughout the Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park. GREMM holds the following permits for its research activities issued by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Parks Canada and Sépaq: QUE-LEP-015-2024, SAGMP-2024-45891, PNFS-2024-006, and PNFS-2024-06-07.