The humpback whale, which has been swimming the waters of the St. Lawrence River, has been seen motionless, near Varennes, east of Montreal about 40 kilometres north of where it was first spotted by Montrealers.
When the whale was first spotted in The Old Port of Montreal, authorities said it showed no signs of distress and was probably just searching for food.
According to officials from the Groupe de recherche et d’education sur le mammiferes marins (GREMM) Robert Michaud, everything indicates that it is indeed the humpback whale that is floating and died. It is now up to GREMM to clearly identify where the whale is and determine whether it is easy to access. These operations will be carried out in collaboration with Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Montreal.
"If the animal is truly stranded and if the carcass is accessible, we will have to pass to the evaluation, to see what could be done in the circumstances." - GREMM. "It’s a big animal, it doesn’t move around easily, it’s several tons, and we don’t want to let it drift."
