First recorded ice entrapment of a beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) in east Greenland

Kristin L. Laidre; Jasmine Ware; Marie Zahn; Peter Hegelund; Jon Aars

doi:10.33265/polar.v43.9844

Kristin L. Laidre Polar Science Center, Applied Physics Laboratory, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; and Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, Nuuk, Greenland
Jasmine Ware Department of Environment, Government of Yukon, Whitehorse, YT, Canada
Marie Zahn School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
Peter Hegelund Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, Nuuk, Greenland
Jon Aars Norwegian Polar Institute, Tromsø, Norway

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33265/polar.v43.9844

Keywords: Sea ice, sassat, white whale, freeze-up

Abstract

Beluga whales are rare along the coast of east Greenland and the closest recognized stock occurs around Svalbard. Here we report on an ice entrapment of an adult beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) in north-east Greenland. The whale was observed entrapped in the fast ice on 21 April 2023 in Loch Fyne (73°54’N, 21°51’W) during a visual aerial survey for polar bears (Ursus maritimus). The whale was located >100 km from open water (i.e., pack ice) and appeared in poor body condition. A literature review back to the early 1900s failed to produce any other records of beluga whale ice entrapments in east Greenland.

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