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Belugas snapped on our Underwater Cam by Tipper

How can thousands of Belugas disappear overnight?

In a pinch, Beluga Cam Captain Hayley Shephard relies on her wisdom and past experiences on the Beluga Boat to guide us to treasure.


“I am humbled and reminded that although we get on the water with high hopes and even an agenda, nature is truly the leader in all of this. It is the weather, the whales, the tides and currents that dictate our experiences and we are just along for the ride.

On Sunday we motored out of the Port of Churchill expecting the Belugas to be right there, as they have been for the past five days. Not a white whale could be seen in all horizons that we searched. How can thousands of Belugas disappear overnight?

Having worked as a guide here for two summer seasons, I recalled many days where we were forced to travel deeper in to the estuary for at least 7km, sometimes in zero visibility fog, to find the location of all the whales.

Yesterday that is exactly where we headed. It offered quite a different experience as the water was the colour of tea, and the shallows forced the whales to stay just beneath the surface. We could view hundreds of tea tainted Belugas as far as the eye could see.

Although we had limited close ups on the underwater camera’s, the vocalizations with the boat engine off, made up for it. A symphony of sound came from the shallow waters of the Churchill River, as the Beluga’s chirped, squeaked and squealed, filling living rooms and offices around the world, for those who eagerly listened.”

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