Magazine
Seals: topic of interest at marine mammals emergencies
Nearly a dozen seal carcasses were reported to 1-877-7baleine in April, and soon the first reports of pups will also…
Local residents, fishermen and boaters requested to report any dead or vulnerable marine mammal to 1-877-7baleine
With the return of mild temps and melting ice, this is the time of year when residents, fishermen and boat…
Reminder to fishermen: report all entangled whales to 1-877-7baleine
The commercial fishing season is well underway. This is the time of year when Mammal Marine Emergencies reminds fishermen that…
Belugas: first carcass for 2018 and recap of 2017
On March 26, the first beluga carcass of 2018 was reported to 1-877-7baleine at Coin-du-Banc in the Gaspé Peninsula. The carcass was…
Humpback stranded in magdalen islands: questions & answers
On Sunday, March 25, the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network received a call concerning a beached humpback whale in the surf at Étang-du-Nord…
Right Whale Mortalities 2017: Overview
In 2017, 18 right whale carcasses have been found in the North Atlantic near the Canadian and US coasts. For…
What kind of seal is that?
One observer reported a seal carcass found in Cacouna to the Marine Mammals Emergencies call centre. What species is it?…
Return of winter seals: two new sightings
Nordic visitors were spotted last weekend in the Gaspé as well as in the Bellechasse region upstream of the Estuary.…
Return of winter seals
In these early days of autumn, seals that spend their winters in the waters of the St. Lawrence are returning…
Fresh beluga carcass found in Saint-ulric
The Matane unit of Sureté du Québec contacted 1-877-7baleine after a resident stopped by the station to report a live…
Extremely Rare Beaked Whale Species Stranded in Magdalen Islands
Two carcasses are found side by side on the Pointe-aux-Loups beach on October 13. Observers initially believe they have found…
From the sea to the lab: the journey of a beluga carcass (3/3)
In the past two weeks, we’ve tracked the journeys of beluga carcasses from the open sea to the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine…
From the sea to the lab: the journey of a beluga carcass (2/3)
From Necropsy to Microscope Last week, we tracked the journey of a female beluga from drifting offshore to the Faculty of Veterinary…
From the sea to the lab: the journey of a beluga carcass (1/3)
Follow the stages of a beluga carcass recovery, from the initial report to the trip to the Faculty of Veterinary…
1-877-7baleine still active as autumn draws near
With the beginning of the school year, the crowds of vacationers are thinning out on the shores of the St.…
A summer overshadowed by right whale mortalities
The Marine Mammal Emergencies call centre has already handled nearly 200 cases and just over 350 calls this year. These figures are…
Whale soup
Monday morning, August 7. My vacation kicks off and pushes me to the opposite coastline, in the direction of the…
Marine mammal emergencies season in full swing
With the call centre team handling dozens of calls daily already in these first few days of August, the season…
St. Lawrence Week: Blue Whale
As part of St. Lawrence Week, Whales Online offers a glimpse of species that have a special meaning for each…
Second minke whale stranded in lévis in one year
Update On the afternoon of June 6, veterinarian Stéphane Lair conducted a cursory external exam of the minke whale. It was confirmed…
Young Seal on the River Banks: Do Not Disturb!
The months of May and June are pupping season for harbour seals. Every year, the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response…
Young Humpback Found Stranded in Godbout Given Second Life in Tadoussac
On the shores of the Côte-Nord region, near Godbout, a small humpback whale was reported to Marine Mammal Emergencies on…
Citizens of the St. Lawrence, stay alert! Report any dead or vulnerable marine mammal to 1-877-7baleine
The Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network (QMMERN) relies on cooperative local citizens and fishermen to promptly report any dead or struggling…
Dead beluga stranded in magdalen islands; a carcass protected by law
On Saturday, a beluga washed up onto Fatima beach in the Magdalen Islands. The carcass is being eyed by local…
First beluga carcass of the year reported in gaspésie
The first beluga carcass of the year was reported to Marine Mammals Emergencies. A resident of the Gaspé Peninsula town…
Spring Reveals Two Dolphin Carcasses in Sainte-Flavie
Two white-sided dolphin carcasses were discovered in Sainte-Flavie on March 21. A resident of this Lower St. Lawrence town and…
Dead Whale Adrift Amongst the Gaspé Ice Floes
Reports have been flying back and forth for the past three days: a whale carcass has been drifting along the…
When opera embraces belugas: an encounter of great beauty!
A mother beluga and her offspring gracefully slip through the waters of the St. Lawrence under the watchful eye of…
Fin Whale Carcass in Montmagny: Flashback to 1988
A few weeks ago, a botanist passionate about nature and wildlife took advantage of a winter day to sort through…
Is it normal to see seals on the ice?
Calls made to 1-877-7baleine since the end of last year were mostly from witnesses who observed seals lying on the…
Volunteering for Marine Mammal Emergencies
Every year since 2012, the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network has been recruiting volunteers who are available and motivated…
Marine Mammal Emergencies: an Active and Essential Network
In its 12th season, 1-877-7baleine team expended considerable effort to process no fewer than 410 calls from citizens reporting dead…
Busy Fall at 1-877-7baleine
One would've thought that the off season translates into peace and quiet at the Marine Mammal Emergencies call centre, but…
Humpbacks in 3D at the Montréal Science Centre
Dive into the splendid waters of Alaska, Hawaii and the Kingdom of Tonga for an immersive experience in the heart…
Blue Whale Found Dead in St. Lawrence Waters
A rare occurrence in the St. Lawrence; researchers of the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network confirmed this week that…
Marine Mammal Diversity at the Dawn of Winter
As the first snow falls on the St. Lawrence, some whales continue to behave as if summer has never ended.…
Rare adult hooded seals on shore!
An employee of Saumon Gaspé (Translator's note: a salmon fishing outfitter) was in for a surprise on Tuesday morning as…
Whales Slow to Migrate
"The whales are on a reproduction strike", jokes a News from Afield collaborator following her observation of two humpback whales…
I seem to think I saw a killer whale in Tadoussac this summer; is this possible?
It's not impossible, but there were no confirmed sightings in the Gulf of St. Lawrence this season. Perhaps it was…
Autumn Abundance
The fall harvest has been bountiful" writes in a St. Lawrence regular, visibly excited following all the large rorquals he…
Scientists Remain Concerned about Belugas
The 2016 season adds to the spate of St. Lawrence beluga mortalities: 14 carcasses were recovered and examined. It's not…
Marine Mammal Emergencies “Detectives”
This morning, a resident of the Bas-Saint-Laurent region reported the carcass of a toothed whale with a dark back and…
Live Stranded Dolphins: Story from an Anticosti Island Resident
Marine Mammal Emergencies has been busy since early fall, especially with incidents involving live stranded dolphins. On September 28, six…
What should be done if a cetacean is stranded alive?
Last August 29, a mother and daughter found a live harbour porpoise stranded on the beach in the town of…
Fish, Seals, Birds, Whales and Company!
What diversity in the St. Lawrence! Observers have an extremely diverse list of species to report these past few days,…
Return of the Big Blue
It is said that the St. Lawrence is one of the best places in the world to observe blue whales,…
Struggling Belugas in the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park
Last week, Marine Mammal Emergencies received several calls for two vulnerable belugas: one near the Pointe-Noire observation site at the…
“Unprecedented!”
It seems that late August is bringing its fair share of unique moments to observers on the St. Lawrence. In…
Fins to the Sky
When whales surface, they show only one twentieth of their body. One should therefore expect to see just their back…
Diversity and Amazement in the St. Lawrence
The past few days have been emotionally rich for observers along the St. Lawrence. First, the presence of a narwhal…
Surprising Observations
The stories coming in this week from our News from Afield observers are exciting; not only is the diversity impressive,…
July 29-31: Beluga watching awareness campaign
For the second consecutive year, Fisheries and Oceans Canada and Parks Canada are encouraging recreational boaters to adopt good practices…
5th Beluga Carcass for 2016
A kayaker was the first to report a beluga carcass when he contacted the media yesterday morning, July 17. Marine…
It’s All a Matter of Food!
It's a well known fact: the St. Lawrence is a vast, open-air buffet for cetaceans. The abundance of prey is…
Right Whales in the Waters of the Gulf
Week after week, the same pattern has been emerging throughout the St. Lawrence. Rorquals are very much present, sometimes observed…
Rescue Attempt of a Young Beluga Stranded Alive – Updated July 7, 2016: Video Posted
On June 30, 2016, a female beluga just a few hours old was found stranded alive in Rivière-du-Loup. The team…
Humpbacks in the Spotlight
In recent days the waters of the St. Lawrence have been host to a variety of marine mammals, but humpback…
Fresh Beluga Carcass Found in Sainte-Flavie
On the morning of June 28, the municipality of Sainte-Flavie received a call from citizens who had discovered a beluga…
Observations by the Ton
Observers at sea and on land are excited, and for good reason! The St. Lawrence River is teeming with life,…
Does Watching Belugas from a Kayak Disturb Them?
There is a common misconception that a kayak has no effect on belugas and other whales because it is a…
Final journey of a Sowerby’s beaked whale
A Sowerby’s beaked whale was reported to 1-877-7baleine on Monday, June 13 on the shores of Escuminac in the Gaspé…
The St. Lawrence as a Performance Stage
Minke whales are now a rather common sight in the St. Lawrence, sometimes alone, sometimes a half dozen or more…
Greyhounds of the Sea Making a Splash
The weather this week has not been conducive to observations in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence. The weather…
Young Seal Disturbed at Cap-aux-Os: Key Things to Remember
A young harbour seal was reported last week on a Gaspé Bay beach. The case sparked many reactions and unprecedented…
Mortality of a Female Beluga
On 29 May 2016, an article about a beluga carcasse found in Les Escoumins was published. The fresh carcass was transported to the…
Whales are Back
Emotions are running high as a new season gets under way. Cruises in the Gaspé Bay region began operating on…
A Week Full of Emotions!
Pairs of harbour porpoises in Franquelin, four fin whales off of Tadoussac, a large rorqual in Baie-des-Sables in the Gaspé…
Signs of Life, from Charlevoix to the Gaspé
Great news for those eagerly awaiting the return of whales in the St. Lawrence: cruise operators, land-based observers and researchers…
Live Seal Pup on the Beach: What Should You Do?
The months of May and June correspond to the pupping season for harbour seals. Every year, the Quebec Marine Mammal…
Between Sky and Sea
In recent days, observers have been as captivated by life at sea as in the air! Great whales do not…
Mortalities in the Estuary
A Beluga Carcass in Bas-Saint-Laurent Every year, the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network handles between 15 and 20 cases of…
When “family friends” come to see us
As migratory species, whales take advantage of the rich St. Lawrence waters in the summer to feed. Every summer, they enter…
Young Minke Whale Beached in Québec City Region
The story has already generated its share of headlines: a whale, more specifically a minke whale, was found dead on…
Large Rorquals Here and There
After an abundance of reportings last week, observers have become quieter of late! Exceptions include a cruise in the Gaspé…
Show me your teeth and I’ll tell you who you are
Since early April, Marine Mammal Emergencies has handled three cases involving seal carcasses: two in Sept-Îles and one in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts. There…
Influx of Good News
For the first time in several months, a considerable number of News from Afield observers have observations to report. First,…
When is the Best Time to Observe Whales in the St. Lawrence?
This is a very difficult question to answer! The "best time" to see cetaceans in the Estuary and Gulf of St.…
Concert of Sea Canaries
Observations of small groups of belugas have been reported here and there since the beginning of March, but this week,…
First “Marine Mammal Emergencies” Cases of the Season
Activity at the Call Centre 1-877-7baleine changes with the seasons; April and May are the months when we receive reports…
“Here We Go Again!”
We had been waiting for this announcement for some time, namely the first irrefutable signs of spring. On the morning…
Why do whales have fins?
Whales generally have four fins: two pectoral fins (instead of arms), a caudal fin (also called the tail) and a…
Marine Mammal Emergencies Reiterates the Importance of Reporting Dead or Vulnerable Marine Mammals
[caption id="attachment_18443" align="alignright" width="250"] © Marie-Frédérique Robitaille[/caption] The arrival of spring is synonymous with the return of marine mammals that…
How do Boats Avoid Whales?
Collisions between ships and cetaceans are rather frequent and are a recognized cause of cetacean mortality in the world, despite…
“Hunting and Fishing” Season
"The view is endless!" reports one observer in the Gaspé region, already getting the whale-watching boats ready for the upcoming…
Marine Mammal Emergencies Gears Up for Another Season
[caption id="attachment_18286" align="alignright" width="184"] © Fabienne Michot[/caption] After two months of complete silence in the 1-877-7baleine call centre, a case…
First Whales Observed in the Estuary
It was with contagious enthusiasm that a boat captain from Les Escoumins phoned the Whales Online team: "I could have…
How can whales sleep in the water without drowning?
Like humans, whales are mammals. They therefore have lungs and breath air at the surface. They are unable to extract…
Relentless Passion… Even in Winter!
Though ice is increasingly present in the St. Lawrence and Gaspé Bay is partially frozen, other sectors remain ice-free, making…
Observations Reduced to a Trickle
Don't be surprised: February is a quiet period in terms of the presence of whales in the St. Lawrence. Nevertheless,…
24 St.Lawrence belugas have been adopted!
In late 2014, the Group for Research and Education on Marine Mammals (GREMM) and its colleagues from the St. Lawrence Beluga…
Rare Cuvier’s Beaked Whale Found Dead in Nova Scotia
On February 7, Nova Scotia's Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network, the Marine Animal Response Society (MARS), received a report of…
Over Twenty Whales Die in North Sea in One Month
Since mid-January, 25 sperm whales have been found beached on the British, Dutch and German coasts. The reasons for these…
Seals on the Ice: Cause for Concern?
Since the beginning of winter, Marine Mammal Emergencies has received reports of seals on the ice in the Gaspé region,…
Marine Mammal Emergencies Needs You!
Do you live near the St. Lawrence? Do you enjoy walking on its shores? Do you have a flexible schedule…
Film In the Heart of the Sea Hits Theatres December 11
For centuries, whales have sparked the imagination. This Friday, December 11, the film In the Heart of the Sea will…
Here we go again! Seals on the horizon…
On December 10, the Marine Mammal Emergencies Call Centre was contacted by a media source: it had received a report…
Autumn Surprise
For nearly a month, the phone at the Call Centre 1-877-7baleine has been silent. Then, it's just before 5 pm…
FIRST COLLECTIVE ADOPTION COMPLETED; DL0030 TO BE CALLED ATHÉNA
Almost a year to the day after the second wave of the Adopt a Beluga campaign was launched (in French), the first…
A SECOND BEER FOR THE ADOPTION OF AL BY LES BIÈRES BÉLUGAS LTÉE
Anticipated announcement: the second in a series of three beers developed by the team from Les Bières Bélugas Ltée is…
“Moby Dick” at the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde beginning September 22, 2015
SPECTACULAR CHASE IN STORMY SEAS Dominic Champagne revolutionized the staging of great mythical tales with The Odyssey. Now he is…
Why so many questions?
The 1-877-7baleine call centre team frequently says that their work often resembles that of a detective! When a mammal is…
October 13-15, 2015: Symposium on Impact of Human Disturbance on Arctic Marine Mammals
From October 13 to 15, 2015, NAMMCO (The North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission) is organizing a symposium on the effects…
Another Behemoth Stranded in the Magdalen Islands
[caption id="attachment_13837" align="alignright" width="250"] © Léonard Chevarie[/caption] The North Atlantic right whale that washed up on the western dunes in…
End of Summer at Marine Mammal Emergencies
As summer is winding down in the coastal areas of the St. Lawrence, one might think that the telephone at…
Piper’s Adventure Caught on Camera
A little more than two months have passed since the discovery of Piper's carcass off Percé, a North Atlantic right…
A 12th Beluga Carcass Found in 2015
12th Beluga Carcass Discovered On August 18, observers stationed on the rocks of the Marine Environment Discovery Centre (MEDC) in…
A Disturbing Beluga Carcass
Residents of the town of Chandler promptly called 1-877-7baleine on the afternoon of August 13 when a beluga carcass was…
Two North Atlantic Right Whale carcasses in the Gulf of St. Lawrence; One Washes Ashore
After the right whale found dead off the coast of Percé this past June 24, two more carcasses of the…
Three Beluga Carcasses Added to Year’s Tally
Prior to the two incidents reported last July 25, six belugas had been found dead since the beginning of the…
On the Lookout for a Beluga
Early this morning, at 8:30, a collaborator from the Canadian Coast Guard reports a beluga carcass that a friend spotted…
Large Rorquals Adrift…
In the Gaspé "It was so big...even from miles away, I thought it was an island!" These are the words…
First Beluga Carcass for 2015
It's the low season for the call centre of the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Response Network; a single case has…
Dead or Struggling Marine Mammals: 1-877-7baleine
With the arrival of spring, the once frozen shores of the St. Lawrence begin to open up, exposing carcasses of…