Tuktoyaktuk (Oct 30/06) - A pod of perhaps 200 beluga whales entered Husky Lakes last week, only to find their escape partially blocked by forming ice.

Most of the whales have since escaped and returned to the Beaufort Sea.

However, as of press time, many belugas were still swimming in Husky Lakes, about 55 kilometres southeast of Tuktoyaktuk, and looking for a way out.

Residents of Tuktoyaktuk said they were concerned for the animals.

Since belugas are mammals - and therefore breathe at the surface - they will most likely die when the lake freezes over. "It's really hard to say how many will get out," hunter Richard Binder said on Oct. 25.

He recalled seeing about 200 belugas in the lake on Oct. 20, as he flew over the site in a plane. Binder added that the whales occasionally get caught in Husky Lake because they squeeze through narrow channels to access the fish.

The lake is partly salt water, which means the belugas could survive if the weather is right.

Binder said residents of Tuktoyaktuk hope the belugas get free. However, he said the trapped whales should be hunted, as it would be pointless to let them starve beneath the ice.

When belugas were trapped in Husky Lake in 1996, Binder said hunters waited until December to harvest the animals. By that time, he said, the surviving belugas were thin and looked weak.

"We'll make sure the harvest is as quick as possible," he said. Andrea Cyr, who oversees the Western Arctic for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, also approved of a harvest.

"It's hard to tell the population of belugas in the Western Arctic, but it's believed there are 30,000 to 60,000 animals living here," she said.

"They are not an endangered species here, and (the whales trapped in Husky Lakes) are not a significant part of the population.

"Obviously, we have concern for the whales and hope they escape. But if they were not to exit and become trapped, we would be in favour of a humane harvest from the ice," said Cyr.

She added that this would be an enormous gain for the community, since muktuk is a valuable and nutritious source of food.

Binder said if the belugas were killed, it would represent enough meat for dozens of people, and certainly provide a boost for local hunters.

"It's a bit sad, but it's also good news," he said.