Whale deaths ‘unprecedented’

An marine mammal expert says the fate of critically endangered species could hang in the balance as the death toll of North Atlantic right whales found floating in the Gulf of St. Lawrence rises to six.

Tonya Wimmer of the Marine Animal Response Society says the string of deaths is “unprecedented,” amounting to more than one per cent of the 500 North Atlantic right believed to be roaming the seas.

“For a species that’s sort on the brink like this, every individual counts,” says Wimmer.

“Every year we might have a few individuals that are found dead, and those are devastating in themselves ... We’re at six (deaths) confirmed, and that’s quite catastrophic for this population.”

Wimmer say federal scientists, marine biologists, fishermen and other experts have rallied to get to the bottom of what killed the mammals. The Fisheries Department has sent aircraft and Canadian Coast Guard vessels try to track down the carcasses in the waters near the Magdalen Islands.

The Marine Animal Response Society joined an expedition to examine one of the dead whales last Thursday, Wimmer says. Collecting biological samples will be critical to determining what caused the deaths and hopefully preventing further losses, she says, but it will take a “small army” to fully dissect the carcass of one of the whales.

“There is a huge sense of urgency to get out there and try our best to figure out what’s going on,” Wimmer says. “Being able to get at the root cause is really important, but time is of the essence.”

Scientists have a short window of opportunity to examine the whales before their remains are lost to decay.