The Hudson Bay is packed solid with thick ice and seems to be supporting a healthy seal-feeding season for polar bears. Extreme cold and stormy weather has been pervasive throughout the region this year and should lead to a extended hunting season for bears on the ice surface. Here is the link of the most recent Hudson Bay ice chart from Environment Canada Ice Survey.
Ice accumulating on the Hudson Bay. Karen Walker photo.
Polynas up in the Hudson Straits harbor herds of beluga whales waiting for ice to break up and allow for their spring migration. These open water leads are formed either by warmer currents upwelling from below and keeping an area adjacent to the sea ice unfrozen or from currents and wind conditions that move through the region. They are vital to the survival of narwhals and beluga whales that do not migrate south in the winter.
Beluga whale on the surface. Steve Selden photo.
When the belugas arrive in early summer, almost 2,500 animals will inhabit the coastal waters near Churchill including all the rivers and inlets there. At high tide, the Churchill River becomes a calving estuary stretching nearly eight kilometers up river. These relatively warm waters will make for a calm calving process and infancy. When newborn, calves are a darker almost slate gray. This color, opposing the milky white of the adult stage, is thought to be a subtle camouflage trait for the darker water they inhabit. As they grow and become whiter, the color is camouflage as well when living up north amongst the sea ice of near color. Since adults are more alert and more adept at detecting and eluding predators. Young grey -colored whales enjoy the guardianship and protection of their mothers…swimming tightly in their slipstream.
In summer Churchill has many treasures. Guide Sandra Elvin speaks to a group. Steve Selden photo.
The summer in Churchill is a daily reveal of mystery and treasure hidden in the willows and wildflowers of the tundra and the pre- cambrian rolling boulders of the coastal barrier. Each foray into the wild can produce anything the imagination can bring to mind. A beluga whale carcass nestled in the sea grass out at Halfway Point, a polar bear wandering through the boreal forest looking for some eggs from nesting birds, or even a black wolf lumbering in and out of boggy areas near the town weir out along Goose Creek road. As the summer moves forward, polar bears can be spotted along the coast as they arrive from the ice floes in the bay. Each day, each season produces something new and unexpected. Nothing compares to Churchill in the summer….the pace slows down and time seems to come to a standstill. Of course if you like the chance seeing 40 or more polar bears in a day fall might be the time to visit as well. Natural Habitat Adventures has a wide variety of trips that fit into your travel plans.
Travelmanitoba just released this trailer to get people excited about traveling to Churchill in the summer. I wish the trailer was longer..really well done. After spending a decade guiding summer adventures up north in Churchill there will always be a longing to return for the belugas as well as all the other sights and sounds of this special season. Natural Habitat runs amazing trips from Winnipeg north to Churchill. Many travel by train on the Hudson Bay Railroad...an adventure all its’ own. Come aboard this Arctic summer and see for yourself!
The Churchill River has cracked its’ icy surface into chunky bergs that cruise in and out of the mouth with the swift currents connecting with the Hudson Bay. The annual Spring break-up opens the estuary to sows with baby calves who migrate south each year to enjoy the bounty of food and comfort of the warm water of the inner river. Males swim in mini pods feasting on capelin all across the massive river. The massive white ice vessels will soon be supplanted by graceful shining belugas gliding effortlessly through the frigid brackish water. Churchill’s Arctic summer is almost here.
These recent photos by Churchill local and Natural Habitat guide Rhonda Reid illustrate the sublime transition and rebirth of the Churchill River this Spring.
In the Churchill Arctic summer, between two to three thousand beluga whales voyage southward across the vast Hudson Bay from the Hudson Strait which flows into the Atlantic Ocean to summer in the estuaries around Churchill. These whales winter in the straits since water currents provide life -giving polynas-open water areas where whales and other marine life can surface for air intake. During the Spring as they start their trip, ice still somewhat chunks up the Hudson Bay and makes the trip perilous. Polar bears out on ice floes can sometimes gain access to the whales and find a hearty meal. This can also occur in winter when whales get trapped using only a small opening in the ice when accessible leads or smaller polynas have close up.
Why, one may ask, am I talking about beluga whales in the middle of the northern winter? Recently, documentation of beluga whales trapped in ice being eaten by polar bears have brought attention to the fragile lifestyle of these marine animals. While global warming might not be ideal for polar bears, beluga whales would welcome a little more ice free areas in the far north. It’s not uncommon for belugas or other whales to become trapped in vast expanses of floe ice. With few openings to the world above the whales become isolated unable to reach the next blowhole. belugas can stay below the water surface for about 15 minutes at a depth of up to 66 ft. When they cannot find another air source they must remain at the one they have.
While guiding Churchill Summer trips for over 10 years we were able to get very close to these majestic animals. Quite often we see scars or slashes on the backs of their matte white bodies. These scars or markings are used to identify the belugas much like larger whales are identified by their tale fluke markings. Beluga’s tale flukes are small and rarely seen on a consistent basis. I would inform travelers, without exact evidence, that these markings were sometimes from polar bears attempting to kill the whales. This could really only be true when the whales are trapped within the ice as polar bears would have little chance catching up with a whale in the water. As we can see here this has happened just recently before our eyes in the Arctic.
And, as we can imagine when nature provides a disaster for one species, other species benefit from the misfortune. polar bears predate on the whales and humans then predate on both bears and the whales. The circle of life is continuous.
