Watch thousands of beluga whales embark on their annual migration live
Thousands of whales will be swimming through Canadian waters over the next few weeks.
The annual migration of more than 57,000 beluga whales is underway - and you can watch it live on the Beluga Whale Live Cam.
The whales are swimming down from the Arctic in search of northern Manitoba's warmer waters. Experts will be keeping an eye on the migration because their numbers and patterns give clues about the health of the Arctic ecosystem, Stephen Petersen, director of conservation and research for Assiniboine Park Conservancy, told CTV.
WHALE MIGRATION: WATCH IT HERE
The main cameras have been set up at the intersection of the Churchill River and the Hudson Bay, an area that about two-thirds of the total global beluga population travels through during the summer.
Belugas have a typical lifespan of about 70 years, and a study from July 2020 suggests they may share some social traits with humans.
The paper found that beluga whales are social creatures that like to make friends.
While other animals, like killer whales and African elephants, form social bonds around closely-related family members, belugas were found to interact with close kin as well as distantly related, and unrelated, whales, sometimes forming bonds that spanned several decades.
Thumbnail image courtesy: Getty.
