Working for a better world...
where whales and humans meet.
RESEARCH ~ PROTECTION ~ EDUCATION
In April 2001, a young male beluga nicknamed Casper was discovered with two other juvenile whales (known as Shadow and Phantom) along the Quebec shore near the Strait of Belle Isle. The whales' voyage, 14 km up St. Paul's River, ended tragically with the deaths of Casper's pod-mates. In August of that year, Casper was rescued from the river and released into the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
Eight months later, a highly sociable solitary juvenile beluga arrived in Codroy Harbour, Newfoundland. The school children called this whale Echo. The Whale Stewardship Project (WSP) determined through photo identification that this was Casper who had travelled about 600 km to the south of where he had been released. Having quickly become a tourist attraction, Casper Echo (hereafter known as "Echo") became a primary focus of the WSP's research, protection and public education programs in 2002.
On July 31, 2002 (after three and a half months of being resident in Codroy Harbour), Echo was struck by the propeller of a large vessel. The WSP implemented a special emergency response program for Echo, in consultation with marine mammal veterinarians and other experts.
Two weeks after his injury, Echo disappeared but was resighted 150 km north of Codroy Harbour.
Whale Stewardship Project
P.O. Box 36101
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Canada B3J 3S9
1-902-889-2679
Email: wsp@eastlink.ca
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