The mystery of the beluga which, in the Norwegian sea, wore a strange harness deepens. Experts say he was trained by the Russian Navy as part of a program that uses mammals as special forces.
The mystery of the beluga which, in the Norwegian sea, wore a strange harness deepens. Experts say he was trained by the Russian Navy as part of a program that uses mammals as special forces.
It could have been trained by the Russians, the beluga who has approached a boat in recent days without any fear. On Thursday he was spotted between the islands of Rolvsøya and Ingøya in northern Norway by three fishermen intrigued by the strange harness he wore.
The fishermen, after informing the authorities, with the help of a marine biologist, released the animal which eventually went away spontaneously. But a little thriller was born on this episode.
What is this harness and who put it in the beluga's body? For now, there is only one hypothesis dictated by the branding on it (St. Petersburg Equipment) and by the statements of some experts at the University of Tromso who claim that the animal may be part of a Russian navy training program.
This harness allows you to carry a camera or other material, but what concerns biologists most is the fact that the mammal has been trained.
“If this beluga is from Russia then it's not Russian scientists, but rather the Navy because the researchers don't use harnesses. We know that the Russian military during the Cold War was training belugas to sniff out mines or old torpedoes, ”said Martin Biuw of the Norwegian Marine Research Institute.
Jorgen Ree Wiig, a marine biologist, said: "The beluga looked playful, but our instincts said it was also asking for help getting out of the harness."
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With the help of a fisherman (Joar Hesten) @yngv3 and I managed to free this white whale from some kind of harness. The harness might have been attached to the whale by the Russian navy which is known to have projects where they train white whales. Hopefully the whale is doing well and have found it’s way back to it’s own kind. ??? #beluga #belugawhale #whitewhale #whale #whiterussian #nature_perfection #fiskeridir #fiskeridirektoratet
A post shared by Jørgen Ree Wiig (@wiiiig) on Apr 27, 2019 at 12:11 pm PDT
The beluga is not an animal suitable for training, it is too sensitive and certainly not suitable for guarding naval bases or assisting divers, according to the Murmansk Marine Biology Research Institute.
As we know belugas are mammals, the specimen that approached the boat is very young and even let itself be caressed by the fishermen who also fed it. All signs that show that it is an animal that is not afraid of man.
For Audun Rikardsen, professor at the Arctic University of Norway's Department of Marine and Arctic Biology: "Russia has had some domesticated whales in captivity and some of them have been released."
The professor says he contacted Russian researchers, but they said they were unrelated to the matter. “They tell me that most likely it is the Russian Navy in Murmansk”, he explained again.
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Fisherman frees white whale from body harness in northern Norway today!????? In recent days, the white whale has approached fishing boats off the coast of Finnmark in northern Norway. Fisherman Joar Hesten, was able to remove two straps attached to the animal late Friday after several failed attempts by personnel from the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries. The whale was likely not fully grown and would have suffered as a result of the straps… #Norge video/photo by: @wiiiig , @yngv3 Håvard Hesten, and Allan klo/NRK
A post shared by NORWAY ?? (@norge) on Apr 27, 2019 at 11:07 am PDT
Now the concern is about the fate of this beluga. Both Rikardsen and Wiig argue that it is unable to hunt for food because it was raised in captivity and this could be a major problem for its survival.
Read also:
- Hundreds of belugas and killer whales locked up in a marine prison: the one nobody wanted you to see
- Noc, the beluga who "spoke" like a man (video)
Dominella Trunfio
Photo: Jørgen Wiig / Directorate of Fisheries via AP
