Him: a sick orca stricken and euthanized | Sciences

Rouen – Rescue of a lost orca in the Seine fails.

The animal is barely pulsating, behaving erratically and awkwardly, the responsible prefecture of the Rouen-based Seine Maritime said Sunday evening. The diseased orca will now be killed.

As announced by the county, tumors and rashes can be seen in the animal’s aerial photos. Orca suffers from an advanced fungal infestation that can cause great suffering to the animal. In addition, other vulnerable mammals can become infected. Orca disease can also affect the brain. This could explain his confusion.

The rescue operation began on Saturday

On Saturday, a team made up of scientists, police and firefighters, among others, set out in an attempt to steer a lost orca toward the sea with the help of whale noise. A drone was also used in the experimental rescue attempt, which took pictures of the injured animal.

According to the Marine Mammal Research Group (GEEC), the whale was first seen in early April by the crew of a fishing vessel about 30 kilometers off the coast of Normandy. Clear video recordings. There is no doubt that it is an orca. Since then, it has been repeatedly spotted along the coast, in the mouth of the Seine and about 60 kilometers upstream in the Seine near Yainville.

A GEEC expert explained that orcas are most common off the coasts of Scotland, Iceland and Norway, and further south in the Atlantic Ocean in the Bay of Biscay. Instead of moving toward the sea, the orca continued to swim back and forth, the prefecture said. Even before the rescue, his condition was rated extremely vulnerable and the chances of survival low.

Since the animal was already very weak, the authorities, after consulting with experts, decided to use the unusual noise method. This avoids using a vessel at close range, which could increase the animal’s stress level.

Underwater whale sounds were played by loudspeaker during the mission. Then she watched search teams from boats in the distance as the orca responded to the sounds. But instead of being guided by the sounds, the animal swam back and forth between the banks. In order not to cause more stress to the animal, the experiment was stopped early Sunday evening.

Why the animal appeared in the Seine is unclear. It has been speculated that the whale was initially strayed into the English Channel because it was ill and could feed more easily in the calm waters there.