MONTREAL -- While many marine animal experts have warned that the humpback whale delighting Montrealers for the past week should return to its natural habitat, one Quebec musician put the warning to music.
Damien Robitaille’s adaptation of the Beatles’ “Get Back” urges the mammal to head 600 KM east to where its species generally hangs out.
“Humpback! Get Back to Tadoussac!” he sings. “Get back boy.”
The song is one of 79 other tunes the singer/songwriter, originally from Lafontaine, Ontario, now living in Montreal, has produced and posted during the COVID-19 pandemic including covers John Lennon’s “Hold On”, Radiohead’s “Knives Out”, and a multi-part (all him) version of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody.
As for the humpback, experts say that while freshwater is not lethal to humpbacks temporarily, long exposure can introduce harmful parasites and other issues.
Though Fisheries and Oceans Canada boats have been on site all week keeping other marine vessels away from the animal, it’s a very busy waterway and the risk of collision is real.
Drone footage has estimated the whale to be just under 10 metres long, and it’s likely around three years old.
The whale was spotted Sunday near Pointe-aux-Trembles around noon, which suggests it may be heading back east.
