Category: General blog

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

The 2007 Season is over

Hello to all,

I am back in Montreal (Quebec, Canada) since one week. My season is ending with the G.R.E.M.M. (Groupe de Recherche et d'Éducation sur les Mammifères Marins) after helping them in their AOM project : OBSERVATION ACTIVITIES AT SEA. See my article :

While waiting to finish my 2007 report and analysis and to publish all my pictures, you can ask for all the information, reports, articles, etc... concerning the team's work on their website.

Good reading to everyone and happy back to school.

Sincerely.

Canada, September 2007.

Julien Marchal

Season 2007

Hello to all,

My message is very short because I don't have much time. The whales of the St. Lawrence River (Quebec, Canada) are there, including some rare species.

Good for you!

And for the first time, I work with seals (pinnipeds) and birds on the south shore of the river. So, new marine mammal species for me and fabulous observations. In addition to cetaceans, I can learn about a new species for my personal repertoire.

For those who are interested, the pictures will be on my website after my season and documents about my work.

See you soon.

Rimouski - Quebec/Canada, August 2007.

Julien Marchal

Report of the 59th International Whaling Commission (IWC) (2007)

The "59 th International Whaling Commission / IWC" in Alaska has just finished. Attached are reports from several international NGOs.
From what I have read, we have not made much progress in protecting the whales!

Overfishing: a major issue (June 2007)

I had to give my opinion on the problem of fishing and overexploitation of the oceans. The oceans are being emptied by overfishing. Human consumption is still in high demand, especially in Asian countries. But nobody is aware of this plague and the problems caused in the oceans.

177737593

Everything goes wrong for the Island Expedition association (April 2007)

Following my article on the Island Expedition association (December 2006), I received many emails or letters on this subject. All these people were shocked by their experience during their stay in the Bahamas. One of them, Emilie, sent me this text.

Orcalab 2007 Reference

Hello to all.

I had asked the two researchers ofOrcalab (British Columbia, Canada), to write me a certificate of authenticity of my experience as an ecovolunteer in 1997. I had studied orcas for 2 months.

Neither of them had forgotten me after 10 years! Both of them answered me:

ORCALAB

To Whom It May Concern:

Re: Julien Marchal

We are writing this to confirm that Julien Marchall was a volunteer assistant at OrcaLab for 3 months (June-August) during the summer of 1997. We found Julien to be a competent and personable young man. He was very helpful to our project, willingly doing everything that was asked of him, and got along well with the other volunteers. We are happy to recommend him, and wish him well. Please refer to www.orcalab.org for details of our project.

Sincerely yours,

Paul Spong, Ph.D. & Helena Symonds
Directors of OrcaLab
Email: orcalab@island.net
Tel/fax: 250-974-8068

P.O. Box 510 - Alert Bay - B.C. Canada - V0N 1A0

April 2007.

Julien Marchal

on soundwaveontheroad.com

The man bent her head and grabbed him at her after exercise.

Injury and voluntary termination (2007)

I've been playing sports since I was a kid and I've had a few minor injuries.

Caution with the Island Expedition association (dec 2006)

Dear visitors,

I had to talk about my adventure in the Bahamas in 2001 with the Island Expedition association.
Indeed, a lot of people ask me to go to this Caribbean archipelago for the location and its beaches.

In fact, this association is offering to come aboard their boats and help them with their work, so that they can continue their adventures. The idea is to bring in children from all over the world, to raise awareness of the environment among future generations. It's a fabulous concept.

So I joined the team as a guide, bringing my knowledge of marine mammals and marine biology.

The association was created by two brothers, one of whom lives in Nassau, capital of the Bahamas, and the other in London.

Having lived with one of the brothers for almost a month, I can assure you that the experience was not a good one. We were two people (two Frenchmen) who came to the place, both shocked by this brother. At first, everything was going well, but his demands, his tedious and thankless daily chores became a real ordeal.

For example, before heading out to sea with the group, we had to fetch food for ourselves and the group, and graciously ask for it to be given to us. But it was never easy. Often, the companies began to complain about this merry-go-round and found these games a little "easy". On a day-to-day basis, we became veritable "slaves" to a man who lacked intelligence and personality. He was always on the lookout for sponsors to finance his association, asking everyone for money, advertising for all kinds of companies, with a very specific aim: to finance his organization!

That month, some young students from Colorado, accompanied by their teachers, had paid a lot of money to visit the Bahamas. Unfortunately for them, it was a failure and a disappointment in the face of reality. The logistics were catastrophic and even dangerous. On the first day by boat, there were too many of us on a small sailboat, and after a few hours the engine caught fire. Back to square one and a second trip in a magnificent boat, safer and more secure, at the association's expense (normal). The teachers decided to stop their collaboration following a series of problems, concerning organizational details, thefts, etc. I later learned that a complaint had been lodged against the association.

My friend had already put an end to his agreement with the brother, and stayed in Nassau to visit the island and join a couple of friends on their sailboat. I had decided to continue the trip in the hope of encountering dolphins and holding out until my return to the capital. But it was difficult, as he had a nasty habit of being overbearing, selfish, a liar and a thief. I had to pay him a small amount of money for miscellaneous expenses (which I was obviously going to pay), but he confiscated my camera. I couldn't believe it!

Anyway, as soon as I got back to the capital, I headed off to join my friend and enjoy my last few days on the island. It was wonderful!

I wanted to write this text (perhaps a little late), so as not to volunteer for this association and above all to know which brother will be present. If you ask me for advice, and which one to choose, I'll be happy to give it to you.
But you should know that there are people out there who can take advantage of you to promote their association worldwide.

You have to be careful when it comes to volunteering, and not be forced to do difficult things, or accept being disliked, just because you're volunteering! Be careful, because it does happen. To the detriment of your objective and the environment!

Sincerely.

Montreal, Quebec, Canada, December 2006.

Julien Marchal

2006 Season: Great Blue Heron Cruises

Diary - June 2006

The 2006 season got off to a slow start in June.

Also, the great whales, fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) and Blue Whale (Balaenoptera musculus) arrived at the end of the month and were spotted not far from Portneuf - Sur - Mer on surface feed. Not before.

For belugas (Delphinapterus leucas), Minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) or grey seals (Halichoerus grypus)Every time we went out, we had a chance to meet them.

To this end, every month throughout the summer I will be publishing a summary of all our observations made aboard our two boats (zodiacs). This work is indispensable and necessary for the follow-up of our sea outings.

This is a table containing information for our staff and for researchers.

At the end of the season, our comments will help the scientific groups to better understand the cetaceans of the St. Lawrence, their numbers, behavior, etc... We collaborate in the field with American and French biologists, and with the Swiss scientific group "bb", under Dany's supervision.

Attached is the table for June 2006.

Table of the month to download : Season.2006_JUNE

Portneuf-Sur-Mer, Quebec - Canada, June 2006.

Julien Marchal

 

Diary - July 2006

July was very different from last month.

The first few days were difficult for big whale watching, but slowly a few arrived.

The Minke whale ( Balaenoptera acutorostrata ) present in June disappeared this month! We were very surprised not to see it again. Used to eating fish, its food must have disappeared from our observation area.

On the other hand, "krill", the small shrimp that large whales need as food, was abundant at different depths and currents. This may explain the presence of some species and not others.

The Blue Whale ( Balaenoptera musculus ) was present throughout the month, but we're still a long way from its peak.

On our best days, we saw up to six whales at the same time and a pair swimming together. Pairs normally form at the end of the season, between September and October.

Fin whales ( Balaenoptera physalus ) were rarely seen and continued their journey opposite Tadoussac.

Seals, porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) and belugas ( Delphinapterus leucas) were very numerous on our outings.

The weather was difficult, and for three days in a row we were forced to stay at "La Marina", putting the brakes on a cash inflow. But we know the risks of this business.

Attached is the table for July 2006. The GPS points column is empty because I'm going to enter all the coordinates at the end of the season noted by our researchers.

Table of the month to download : Season.2006_JULY

Portneuf-Sur-Mer, Quebec-Canada, July 2006.

Julien Marchal

Diary - August 2006

All rights reserved "Croisières du Grand Heron 2006".

August 2006 was similar to July.

Whales that don't stop in front of the village, but continue on to Tadoussac. The company's motorboats (Zodiacs) have to spend a lot of fuel to meet them.

What's more, the weather this month was bad, with a lot of wind that prevented us from taking customers out. This didn't help the company, which wasn't making much money. A drop in customer numbers is a serious handicap for any small, isolated company in Canada. This one has been in existence for over 10 years, but pays few (and not enough) employees, and the managers are retired. It's obvious that a lack of communication, marketing, isolation, accepting people for free, etc., are not conducive to its emergence.

In fact, I was indirectly affected by the lack of money. Unfortunately!

This season, the village of "Les Escoumins" or "Tadoussac" saw an exceptional number of whales in their waters. For the past 5 years, the number of large cetaceans had been declining in this sector of the St. Lawrence River. And this year, we could find a dozen whales a day! and sometimes different species. What luck for them!

For us, we had to sail for about an hour (in calm seas) to meet them, and then return to pick up a second group. So not much time for whale watching. The 5-hour package at sea was the most appropriate for this season.

The Blue Whale ( Balaenoptera musculus ) was present throughout the month, as usual. I was lucky enough to see a Minke Whale ( Balaenoptera acutorostrata ), which hadn't been seen since June.

In any case, there were plenty of great moments, and we'll always remember the blue whales ( Balaenoptera musculus ) feeding on the surface, forced to stand aside, pectorals and baleen visible! All this at sunset! Magnificent!

Everyone will tell you that such behavior is rare in the world, and the St. Lawrence River makes it possible.

Table of the month to download : Season.2006_AOUT
Let's make the most of it before it's gone!

Montreal (Quebec - Canada), August 2006.

Julien Marchal

Why is it less cold in Canada (June 2006)

Everyone told me that the Canadian cold was going to be terrible and hard to bear for my first winter! That I would regret moving there, coming from the south of France where it's warm all year round!

0:00
0:00