Beluga Birth

It's a Bouncing Baby Beluga!Qila gave birth to her first calf at 4:28 PM Tuesday, June 10, 2008.This newborn beluga is:about 1.5 metres long and weighs more than 50 kilograms (at birth)slate grey -- it will gradually lighten as it matureswrinkled for the first few weeksadorableQila was born at the Aquarium on July 23, 1995, and is now a mom herself.Her trainers are monitoring her and the newborn calf to give her calf the best chance for survival. Watch a video of Qila's ultrasound on our YouTube channel.This is Qila's first calf and like any new mammal mom she is learning how to care for her baby. One of the first few milestones the veterinary staff will be looking for is bonding and nursing.In preparation for the birth, two of the belugas (Imaq and Kavna) were moved to the Aquarium's research area behind the scenes.The move gives Qila the space she needs to bond and nurse her calf. It also minimizes the distractions to her as she establishes a nursing pattern with her newborn calf.Aurora, Qila's mom, will stay with her as a companion.Imaq and Kavna will return to join Qila and her calf once the staff are certain that mom and calf are ready to widen their social circle. Imaq is the father of Qila's calf.

Channel: Pets & Animals
Uploaded: June 11, 2008 at 2:28 am
Author: VancouverAquarium

Length: 01:10
Rating: 4.94
Views: 154959

Tags: aquarium  baby  beluga  qila  vancouver  whale  

Video Comments