Wednesday, November 17, 2004

Infectious disease may have killed friendly beluga whale Poco

By From staff reports,

Copyright © 2004 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.  
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An infectious disease may have killed a beluga whale that sought the company of humans off the shores of New England, according to marine mammal researchers.

The whale known as Poco was found dead in a marshy mud flat in the Mill Cove area of South Portland on Monday. The body of the young whale was taken to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts for a necropsy. Researchers believe the whale died during the weekend.

The animal’s lymph nodes were larger and wetter than normal, and the tissues around the esophagus were swollen and filled with fluid, possible signs of an infectious disease, according to Dr. Larry Dunn of the Mystic Aquarium, who is leading the researchers examining the carcass.

The type of disease and how the whale may have contracted it were not immediately clear. Researchers hope tissue samples will yield more answers in the coming weeks.

The whale had been feeding and processing food well until a few days before his death, and there were no fresh wounds, Dunn said. A CAT scan showed that Poco’s right ear was malformed, but the researchers do not believe that was the cause of death.

Dunn said there was no evidence that human interaction caused the whale’s death.

Assisting Dunn were experts from the University of New England, the Cape Cod Stranding Network and the New England Aquarium. The New England Aquarium led the effort during the summer to monitor the whale and educate the public about its behavior.

The 660-pound whale, which was just under 8 feet 11 inches long, would follow and rub up against boats, divers and swimmers.

Beluga whales typically live in groups in arctic and subarctic waters. Poco was first spotted in the Bay of Fundy, off the town of Pocologan, New Brunswick, in the fall of 2003.

He was spotted off Gloucester, Mass., in March, and nearly 150 sightings followed, the most recent on Oct. 30 in Saco Bay.

HALIFAX – Fishers, divers and whale watchers are keeping an eye on a friendly beluga whale swimming in the Bay of Fundy.

Poco: friendly beluga’s curiosity may lead him to danger

The young whale was first sighted in September near an aquaculture site at Pocologan, N.B. Since then, Poco – as he has been nicknamed – has been swimming around commercial divers while they work on salmon pens.

Beluga whales are friendly by nature and they crave interaction with their own kind.

Poco somehow became separated from his pod and he seems to have turned to people to fill the void.

Belugas aren’t usually found in the region, so staff at a Nova Scotia beluga protection group are tracking Poco closely.

“I do encourage people to remember these are wild animals,” says Cathy Kinsman, director of the Whale Stewardship Program.

Cathy Kinsman

“Poco may touch a diver on the shoulder, but I recommend that they stay calm and go on with their work.”

Kinsman fears Poco’s curiosity will lead him to danger, like getting entangled in fishing gear.

Ten years ago, Wilma the whale mysteriously appeared in the province’s Chedabucto Bay. She stayed for six years, swimming around boat propellers while people tried to feed and ride her.

Kinsman says she hopes Poco swims away and joins his pod. She suspects he comes from the St. Lawrence River, although it’s possible he swam down from the Arctic.

She adds their research over the last six years suggests an increase in the number of stray belugas throughout Atlantic Canada.

Kinsman continues to monitor Poco’s movements. He was last reported heading away from western New Brunswick, possibly towards Maine.

Written by CBC News Online staff

Copyright © 2004 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation – All Rights Reserved