Leaving the Estuary

November 20, Cap de Bon-Désir in Les Bergeronnes: our collaborator Renaud Pintiaux settles down to take a few pictures of local marine life. He is happily observing a minke whale when the powerful spout of a blue whale erupts from the surface. How does he know it’s not a fin whale? The bump surrounding its blowholes is more protruding. Its dorsal fin is generally smaller and more triangular as well. And, of course, the bluish-grey speckling is distinct from the dark grey colour of the fin whale.

The blue whale off Cap de Bon-Désir heads downstream, vigorously swimming away from the rocks. Renaud leaves the site to try a new spot about ten kilometres away, this time at the wharf in Les Escoumins. The blue whale reappears and continues its journey down the St. Lawrence. “It’s swimming fast! I don’t think we’ll see him again this year,” he exclaims. He manages to take a few snapshots that might allow St. Lawrence blue whale specialist Richard Sears to identify it. After the departure of the largest animal on the planet, Renaud spots a dozen or so brawny white belugas.

Off the dunes of Tadoussac, the migratory bird surveyor is recording less avifauna these days, which gives him a little more time to scan the waters offshore. Nearly every day, he is delighted to see the splashing manoeuvres of surface feeding minke whales. On November 19, two column-shaped spouts spurt up like geysers. A larger whale swims in front of a smaller-looking one. Even through the spotting scope, it’s impossible to confirm whether they are fin whales or blue whales.