An orca lost in France’s River Seine is to be guided back to sea using sounds made by the species under a last-ditch plan to save the animal’s life.
The local prefecture said it would monitor the animal, also known as a killer whale, from a distance with a drone while emitting orca communications in an attempt to guide it back to the sea, following a meeting with national and international scientists, including marine mammal specialists.
“The use of these non-invasive methods, from several hundred metres’ distance, will make it possible to avoid using ships in the immediate proximity of the animal, which could aggravate its stress and endanger it survival, as well as the safety of rescuers,” said the Seine-Maritime prefecture in a statement.
The four-metre (13ft) orca, identified as a male, was first spotted at the mouth of the Seine on 16 May between Le Havre and Honfleur in Normandy, before it travelled dozens of kilometres upstream to end up west of the city of Rouen.
The orca’s health is deteriorating and it is at risk of dying. It is unable to find enough food in the river and the fresh water is increasingly damaging its health.
“It is in a life-threatening condition … Its state of health is very poor,” Gerard Mauger, the vice-president of Cotentin Cetacean Study Group, told France 3.
“It is really complicated to find solutions to try to make it go back to the salt water. Mauger added that helping the animal risked stressing it.
Muriel Arnal, president of French animal rights organisation One Voice, said there was an urgent need to rescue the animal. “We have to be fast,” Arnal said, suggesting that using nets to guide the orca would be less stressful than placing it on a barge.
She also noted that male orcas are “mummy’s boys”, generally sticking to their mothers their entire lives.
