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Following a meeting with national and international scientists,
including marine mammal specialists, the local prefecture said
it would monitor the killer whale from a distance with a drone
while emitting orca communications in an attempt to guide it
back to the sea.
"The use of these non-invasive methods, from several hundred
meters (feet) distance, will make it possible to avoid using
ships in the immediate proximity of the animal, which could
aggravate its stress and endanger it survival, as well as the
safety of rescuers," said the Seine-Maritime prefecture in a
statement posted on Twitter.
The whale, whose health is deteriorating in fresh water, strayed
from the ocean earlier this month, and is at risk of dying.
The 4-metre (13-foot) orca, identified as a male, was first
spotted at the mouth of the Seine on May 16 between the port of
Le Havre and the town of Honfleur in Normandy, before it
travelled dozens of kilometres (miles) upstream to reach west of
the city of Rouen.
Several French media outlets showed footage of the killer whale
in the river, its dorsal fin sticking out of the water and its
distinctive black and white colouring showing as it comes up for
air.
(Reporting by Mimosa Spencer; Editing by Sandra Maler)
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