Holding on to Beauty

A white beluga swims with a darker-skinned beluga at its side. Most likely a mother and her calf. The two shades of their backs contrast with the slate-coloured river. “In these difficult times, you have to cling to beauty,” correctly notes an observer from Anse-au-Sac in Saint-Irénée, who particularly appreciates this duo. “I don’t observe belugas every day, and rarely do I see them in large groups, so when I see a mother and her offspring like this without even having to lift my binoculars, what a joy!”

The joys of whale watching also lift the spirits of Renaud Pintiaux, who is out on the water on October 25. He sets sail from the Tadoussac marina with the rising tide. He encounters no fewer than nine fin whales, including Bp955 (a.k.a. “Ti-Croche”) and Bp903. “And there were other spouts off in the distance,” he adds. Fin whales are feeding not far below the surface. Opportunistic birds take advantage of the “crumbs”, i.e. those fish that have escaped the gulps of the whales.

Off the coast, snow begins to swirl. Four humpback whales come together. “This is a first for me, photographing humpbacks in the snow!” Wrapped in their massive layer of blubber, the humpbacks probably did not even feel the flakes landing on their backs. But tumbling air and water temperatures may cause the whales to embark on their migration before the first ice appears.

A few humpbacks are also observed near Port-Cartier. Also plying these waters are blue whales and fin whales. “But I’ve been seeing fewer and fewer minke whales,” notes Jacques Gélineau. It must be said that observations have also been rather complicated. Snow, cold, and shifting winds made several days too dangerous to operate small watercraft, or shrouded the horizon, rendering whale watching from shore next to impossible.

In Quebec’s Basse-Côte-Nord region, a fisherman crosses paths with two minke whales, one of which is significantly smaller than the other. Both of them are swimming dynamically. “On my fish finder, I could see clouds of krill. I saw a lot of mackerel, and the cod I caught were spitting up little capelin.” Hello food! Minke whales can feed on krill or small fish. Were they cashing in on both at the same time? For the fisherman, in any case, it was a good harvest, both for fish and for whale sightings!