We underestimated the number of belugas by about half, comments Robert Michaud.
He comes to this conclusion following the presentation by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) researcher Véronique Lesage, delivered during the Beluga Symposium 2023, held this week in Montreal.
The good news is that we underestimated the population, says Ms Lesage. But the consensus is that we must not stop protecting them. In fact, we must find a way to improve the living conditions of women and newborns and prevent them from dying.
While the number of individuals was estimated at 889 at the last census in 2013, the latest survey conducted in 2022 shows that there would be between 1,530 and 2,180 belugas in the Saint Lawrence River, an average estimate of 1,850 belugas.
“We have a little more leeway than we thought, but we must not under any circumstances reduce our efforts. »
— A quote from Robert Michaud, scientific director of the Gremm
Véronique Lesage says the method for counting people was formally revised by other scientific colleagues last February.
DFO researcher Véronique Lesage (file photo)
Photo: Radio Canada
“We placed high-resolution instruments directly on the beluga, which allows us to better estimate the time it spends on the surface and in the dive,” explains the scientist.
There are more animals per se, and that’s good news, says Robert Michaud.
But the population is still not increasing. There are signs that the population could decline in the next 10 years, he says.
Researcher Robert Michaud (archive photo)
Photo: Radio Canada / Myriam Fimbry
He recalls that for the last ten years we have seen a high mortality rate in calves. In addition, scientists are identifying more deaths among adult women – they die on average 15 years younger than before – and deaths during childbirth.
We miss females, we miss calves that would have grown, that would have grown. I’m afraid to see if we might see a real population decline in the next five or 10 years, admits Mr. Michaud, who has been studying belugas for thirty years.
“We know we have a ticking time bomb. I urge caution. »
— A quote from Robert Michaud, scientific director of the Gremm
Researchers studying the condition of this marine mammal will begin to consider the impact of ongoing mortality.
A female found in Grosse-Roches in 2019 was giving birth at the time of her death. (file photo)
Photo: Radio Canada / Luc Paradis_Rad
In 2014, scientists concluded that the beluga whale population was declining at about 1% per year.
I do not think we can say that the population is decreasing, but we cannot say that the population is increasing, Mr Michaud now claims.
According to experts, the population is stable based on data collected from 1988 to the present.
The disappearance of cancer in this species would partially explain why this marine mammal is doing better. This is the second piece of good news from the Symposium béluga 2023, argues the scientific director of the GREMM in Tadoussac.
A carcass of a young belugas found in Les Méchins in 2019. (file photo)
Photo: Radio Canada / Claude Côté
In the 1980s, scientists noticed the occurrence of colon cancer in the St. Lawrence beluga, the result of the Saguenay aluminum smelter releasing PAHs. However, the cancer cases would have disappeared completely.
In my career it was really moving to see cancers gone, testifies the DFO researcher who has been studying belugas since 1990.
“It tells us that concrete actions can change the situation. »
— A quote from Véronique Lesage, DFO researcher
Status to check?
Since 2000, this St. Lawrence species has been considered threatened under the Quebec Act of Threatened or Endangered Species. The beluga was listed as vulnerable by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) in 2014.
Could the new estimate revise the beluga’s threatened and endangered species status?
Robert Michaud and Véronique Lesage note that federal and provincial governments may reassess the status of this species given the significance of the new figures presented. There are a number of criteria that need to be taken into account, the scientist comments.
Mr. Michaud also assures that the habitat of the Saint Lawrence belugas still faces threats, in particular from the presence of pollutants in the water, the increase in maritime traffic and the change in the diet of the belugas.
The scientific director regrets that there is no identified threat that has really disappeared.
In his opinion, announcing the creation of an expansion of the marine park remains a good way to ensure additional protection for this marine mammal that is one of Quebec’s symbols.
At the 2023 Beluga Symposium, the need to create quiet areas in the upper estuarine sector, either in Kamouraska or Cacouna, was discussed.
So the idea is to ensure that these sectors like Baie Sainte-Marguerite are given significant protection status. We will recommend it, emphasizes Robert Michaud.