France: Whale sounds are said to lure orca into the sea

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The orca in the Seine, photographed on May 26th

Photo: Pascal Rossignol / REUTERS

A stray orca in the Seine is said to be attracted by the sound of whales and guided towards the sea.

A drone is to monitor the process, said the responsible prefecture of Seine-Maritime, based in Rouen, on Friday evening after consultations with experts.

The animal, which lives near the northern French coast, always swims back and forth and not towards the sea.

The orca is extremely weak and has little chance of survival.

The noise method avoids a close-range operation with a ship, which could further increase the animal's stress level.

According to the Marine Mammal Research Group (GEEC), the whale was first sighted in early April by the crew of a trawler about 30 kilometers off the Normandy coast.

Since then, the orca has been spotted time and time again along the coast, in the Seine estuary and even some 60 kilometers upstream in the Seine near Yainville.

Orcas are more commonly found off the coasts of Scotland, Iceland and Norway, and further south in the Atlantic Ocean in the Bay of Biscay, a GEEC expert explained.

The video recordings made from the fishing boat are clear.

There is no doubt that it is an orca.

There is speculation that the whale strayed into the English Channel because it is ill and can feed more easily in the calmer waters there.

It may also be a young animal that has left its group and is now isolated.

tgk/dpa