A killer whale was found in great difficulty in the Seine between Le Havre and Rouen, the Cotentin Cetacean Study Group (GECC) worried on Wednesday. This “male killer whale, protected and wild species”, is “very weakened”, confirmed the prefecture of Seine-maritime in a press release.

“Blessed or Sick”

“The vital prognosis is engaged. We are really very, very worried. His state of health is very degraded”, specified to AFP Gérard Mauger, vice-president of the GECC, an association based in Cherbourg commissioned by the French Office of Biodiversity (OFB) for the study and preservation of marine mammals in the Channel.

This animal “is naturally not intended to improve separated from its group, nor in fresh water courses. It could be injured or sick”, added the prefecture calling for “avoid any gathering or crowd near it, this which could (…) put this wild animal in danger but above all represents a risk for people”.

The orca is “very thin”

“Prohibition measures are taken so that the cetacean is not approached. They are legally deposited on a shipping notice, with regulatory value”, specifies the prefecture. “The longer she stays in fresh water, the more it will accelerate the deterioration of her state of health. She is very far from the sea. It is really complicated to find solutions to try to encourage her to return to the path of salt water”, added Gérard Mauger. The length of the animal “very thin” but probably weighing more than a ton is “complicated to estimate” but “we are in the 4/5 meters” he specified, “to the shape of its fin it is a male, even if the fin is completely down”.

“Much more sensitive to stress”

Seen for the first time on May 16 between Honfleur and Le Havre, near the Pont de Normandie, the killer whale “most likely arrived already weakened towards the Seine estuary”, he continues. “Her state of health makes it more comfortable for her to be in a river because it is less agitated. She spends less energy”, but “it is more complicated to feed: there is less prey than at sea,” he said.

Helping the animal is complicated because approaching it risks stressing it and “an animal in poor health will be much more sensitive to stress”, explains Gérard Mauger again. The GECC indicates that the animal can transmit a possible virus or cause an accident by moving.