Is it normal to see whales in the Seaway ? Or the Great Lakes for that matter ? I grew up in Cleveland, OH and I don't EVER remember hearing about whales in the fresh water lakes and the Seaway.

right whales in the Gulf of the St. Lawrence. Usually you hear about them in the Bay of Fundy near Maine. I wondered last summer if they were not in new territory because of global warming. Though the Bay of Fundy is colder than the Gulf of the St Lawrence even though it is south. Lake water warms the St Lawrence river and then the gulf. Belugas are usually in the St. Lawrence. Not right whales. I've seen a Minke whale in the opening to the Halifax harbour. Never heard of right whales on that atlantic ocean side of Nova Scotia. But to get to the Gulf of the St Lawrence the right whales would have to go around NS.

What I find REALLY confusing about this is that the whales are traveling from ocean water (salt water) to Lake water (fresh water) and it doesn't seem to kill them outright as soon as they pass the Seaway. From a biological perspective that just seems odd. Adaptation happen all the time in nature, but not THAT quick, it usually takes generations.

The gulf of the St Lawrence where the right whales were found dead last summer is out if the St. Lawrence River. Even further from the seaway. The water is very salty where the right whales were found.