Napou (1956-1991)
Beluga
Adopted by Québec city
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ID number
DL0025
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Sex
Male
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Year of birth
Around 1956 (death in 1991)
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Known Since
1986
Distinctive traits
You have to look at Napou’s dorsal ridge to recognize him. There are numerous small notches from the beginning to the end of the ridge, allowing him to be identified from both the left and right flanks.
Life history
We first met Napou in 1986. He was completely white at the time. He was at least 12 to 16 years old.
His habits and associations suggest that Napou is a male from one of the two male networks in the Saguenay.
Napou was first observed on September 3, 1986. He was then an adult. During this encounter, the team followed his footsteps for almost three hours. He was near the coast, opposite Cap de Bon-Désir. He was accompanied by a dozen adult belugas in a herd of around 100 individuals, almost all of them adults. The team finally left Napou on Île Rouge.
Observations history in the Estuary
Years in which the animal was not observed Years in which the animal was observed
Latest news
Napou was last seen on August 16, 2002. He was in a herd of some twenty individuals near Sainte-Marguerite Bay in the Saguenay Fjord. He swims in the company of the males Walter and Le Survivant.
This is the last time we will cross Napou’s path. His carcass was found on October 9, 2011 on the shores of La Martre in Gaspésie. Post-mortem examination confirmed that it was indeed a male. He was over 55 years old and measured 4.24 m.
Sponsor
Québec city adopted Napou (1989), Bélibec (2014) and participates in the solidary adoptions of Neige, Nics, Solidaire, Bilou and Cica with other riverside municipalities of the St. Lawrence (2014).
Click on the name below to discover texts, drawings and videos composed by children of participating schools on Facebook.
Bélibec was named by the 3th grade class of the École Saint-Yves in Québec City as part of the Our Beluga’s Name is… contest.