Earlier this month, Olivier Morin, a photographer with Agence France-Presse, traveled to the town of Churchill in northern Manitoba, Canada, to observe beluga whales. An estimated 55,000 belugas migrate to Hudson Bay from the Arctic every summer. Each year, thousands of tourists visit to watch the white whales swim and feed where the Churchill River meets the bay—and, in some cases, visitors might spot polar bears hunting those same whales.
Belugas in Hudson Bay
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![An underwater view of a beluga whale looking toward the camera]()
Read moreA beluga whale looks toward the camera, photographed in the murky waters of the Churchill River, near Hudson Bay, outside Churchill, in Manitoba, Canada, on August 5, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
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![The backs of about four belugas break the water's surface as the whales swim toward the photographer.]()
Read moreA group of belugas swim and feed in Hudson Bay, outside Churchill, on August 9, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![An aerial shot of several belugas swimming near a small boat]()
Read moreThis aerial view shows a family of beluga whales following a boat belonging to scientists with Polar Bears International (PBI), in the Churchill River, on August 6, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![Several belugas swim close together at the water's surface.]()
Read moreA group of belugas swim and feed in Hudson Bay on August 9, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
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![A half-dozen belugas underwater, swimming together]()
Read moreBelugas are photographed underwater in the Churchill River on August 8, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![An underwater view of two curious belugas swimming close to the camera.]()
Read moreBelugas investigate the camera, swimming in the Churchill River near Hudson Bay, on August 5, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![Four white humps—the rounded backs of beluga whales—break the surface of a bay.]()
Read moreA distant view of a pod of beluga whales swimming in Hudson Bay on August 9, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
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![A polar bear walks on a rocky shore. The back of a beluga whale swimming nearby appears in the foreground.]()
Read moreA polar bear waits on rocks while hunting beluga whales on August 9, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![One polar bear stands on a rocky shore while another swims nearby.]()
Read morePolar bears come to the shoreline and dive in to hunt belugas in Hudson Bay. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![A whale's tail splashes at the water's surface as it swims away from a polar bear paddling close behind.]()
Read moreA beluga whale escapes from a polar bear in Hudson Bay on August 9, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
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![The head of a swimming polar bear appears just above the water's surface as a beluga whale swims away in the background.]()
Read moreA beluga whale swims away from a polar bear on the hunt, outside Churchill, Manitoba, on August 9, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![Four belugas swim close together.]()
Read moreA pod of belugas swim and feed in Hudson Bay. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![A polar bear gnaws on the remains of a beluga whale on a rocky island.]()
Read moreA polar bear gnaws on the remains of a beluga whale on an island outside Churchill on August 4, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
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![A flock of birds flies in the distance as a beluga makes a small splash while swimming near the surface of a bay.]()
Read moreA beluga whale swims in Hudson Bay early on August 8, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![A photo from above of about half a dozen whales swimming]()
Read moreAn aerial view of belugas feeding in the murky waters of the Churchill River. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![An underwater view of a diving beluga]()
Read moreAn underwater view of a beluga in the Churchill River #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
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![A half-dozen whales swim together underwater.]()
Read moreA pod of belugas swim together near Hudson Bay on August 8, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty -
![A whale swims close to the photographer, water flowing smoothly over its head.]()
Read moreA beluga swims close to the photographer, in Hudson Bay, outside Churchill, on August 9, 2022. #
Olivier Morin / AFP / Getty
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