Warmer Artic waters caused by climate change and the need for food are the likely reasons a pod of orcas was trapped in Hudson Bay this week.

Ice on the bay near Inukjuak, Que., shifted Thursday morning and opened up the small hole where the dozen or so killer whales were trapped for days, giving the mammals safe passage out of what could have been their icy grave.

A whale expert said Thursday that orca sightings in the Arctic, particularly Hudson Bay, will like continue because the ice takes longer to freeze in the winter.

“It’s been interesting over the last few years that there have been more and more sightings of orcas in that area,” said Lance Barrett-Lennard, senior marine mammal scientist at the Vancouver Aquarium.

Many in the Inukjuak thought time was running out for the mammals Wednesday, as the hole seemed to have shrunk in the freezing temperatures.

But two local hunters reported Thursday that the waters had opened up around the small area where, for at least two days, the cramped pod of orcas fought for air.

The winds seemed to shift overnight, pushing the floating ice further away from the shore to open up the water, said Tommy Palliser, a business adviser with the regional government.

“(The hunters) confirmed that the whales were no longer there and there was a lot of open water,” said Palliser.

Barrett-Lennard said the trapped whales, if healthy, could have survived for at least a few weeks without food, possibly even a month.

“From a starvation point of view, they could live a long time,” he said. It was clear from the YouTube video that they were stressed, “and that would play a role in how long they’d live.”

Such an entrapment is uncommon, he added.

Cautious by nature, killer whales rarely get themselves into compromising situations. However, when they travel into new territories — like they have been in recent years into Hudson Bay to chase beluga whales, a quality food source — Barrett-Lennard said this is when they get into trouble.

“They’re slow to adapt and slow to exploit new opportunities,” he said. “Whenever something changes in the killer whale’s environment, it would take a while to get used to, things as basic as changing food.”

While people in the Inukjuak expressed relief Thursday, fears remained that the orcas might not have escaped danger. Some say the water currents and ever-moving ice in the massive, frigid bay may box in the animals elsewhere.

Inukjuak, about 1,500 kilometres north of Montreal, responded Thursday by hiring an airplane to scan the region later in the day for signs of the pod, the town manager said.

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

“We’re quite concerned, that’s why we’re chartering the plane to find out if we can find them,” said Johnny Williams, adding the village of 1,800 people will likely foot the bill for the search.

With files from The Canadian Press