The animal could be an adult sharp-nosed whale, about ten meters in size, according to the observations of several associations, including Sea Shepherd France, cited by the Seine-Maritime prefecture in a press release.
“From what we have been able to see and from what has been reported to us, he seems to be in good health. He is swimming normally,” Lamya Essemlali, president of the ocean defense NGO, told AFP on Friday. .
If the NGO has “no a priori concerns about his state of health”, his priority is to monitor the progress of the cetacean. “He must above all not arrive in fresh water, otherwise it would be problematic: his days would be numbered”, according to Ms. Essemlali who evokes the possibility of making a sound barrier to keep him away.
“The animal observed moves slowly, but with powerful movements, and seems in good physical condition”, notes for its part the prefecture.
“The Haropa captaincy of the port of Rouen immediately issued a notice to shipping, with regulatory value, addressed to all ships, boats and floating devices, in order to inform them of the presence of this wild animal but also to impose the prohibition to approach within 100 meters”, adds the press release released Thursday evening.
“It’s not as abnormal and as worrying as it was for the killer whale. A fin whale is not a gregarious animal”, recalls the president of Sea Shepherd.
In mid-May, an orca in great difficulty was observed in the Seine between Le Havre and Rouen. The cetacean was found dead at the end of May.
A group of experts responsible for monitoring the animal had been created and had decided to euthanize it after the failure of operations to guide it towards the sea, in particular by means of underwater sound stimuli.
