How Did a Beluga Whale End Up 150 Miles from the Ocean in Vermont?

In 1849, the remains of a beluga whale were found in Vermont at a spot 200 feet above sea level and 150 miles inland. This was not the remains of someone's pet, as this beluga whale was naturally emplaced here where it died of natural causes. So, how could this be the case? The answer involves a vast inland sea that only recently disappeared and has since largely been forgotten; a feature known as the Champlain Sea.

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Sources/Citations:
[1] U.S. Geological Survey

0:00 Vermont's Beluga Whale
1:37 The Charlotte Whale
2:11 Lower Sea Levels
3:11 Champlain Sea Extent
3:48 Isostatic Rebound

[Typhooon]

Life long Vermonter. in 8th grade I remember we did a little unit on the Champlain Sea. Heading to Burlington from the east I always imagined that area being underwater and how much water there must've been. The whale was never mentioned. What a wild story

[erictjones]

I support you making a brief cameo in the beginning of your video! It is nice to see you. Thank you for the great informational videos.

[michelday]

In 2001, an other beluga has been found on a farm land in Saint-Félix-de-Valois some 20km north of Saint-Laurent river between Montréal and Trois-Rivières.

[EraX]

From the interview with Shawn, I was suprised to hear the story of this whale, and it this video was unexpected, did not expect a video on this. Keep up the great aork GH!

[The.BansheeRose]

Listening to this, my first thought was 11, 000 years ago Gobekli Tepe was transitioning to the first agricultural societies and on the other side of the planet, a Bulaga whale was swimming over what would be Vermont.

It's funny where one's mind goes when one hears 11, 000 years ago..

[xwiick]

Thanks for all the hard work on these videos!

[whiteknightcat]

But the important question is ... was there a broken pot of petunias nearby, as those are usually associated with sperm whales?

[charlesrovira]

The date puts it at the end of the ice age. The ice sheets had just retreated. The land hadn't rebounded from having several kilometers of ice on it yet. (It's _still_ rising even now.)

[georgemoller]

I was a form carpenter on a large road project in Richmond, VA. about 50 years ago. I was working on a very large footing 40 feet below the surface of the ground (clay material). This area was revealed using approx. 10 super large front end tracked loaders filling large dump trucks day in and day out for a considerable period of time creating a new road bed. The footings were for large retaining walls to hold back the old hillside. I was creating a brace point to shoulder the pressure from the concrete to be poured and I uncovered a round object. I dug it out and realizing how unusual this was I called the Smithsonian describing my find. A week or so later two guys with backpacks came down to where I was working and I showed them my find. They told me it was a vertebra from a whale and not uncommon due to the fact that we were standing at the bottom of where the ocean once was - they said I could keep it. They then turned and looked at the wall of the pit I was working in and said they saw something very interesting. They took their geology hammers and picked across the wall. Down into their hands fell many teeth from ancient shark and dolphin. They said the find made their trip and handed me some for my effort.

[Anne_Umphrey]

I’m a native Vermonter, never heard of the beluga whale skeleton. Thanks for the information. I had been taught about the Champlain sea and the land rebounding. Especially on northern Vermont you can see various levels the shore had been at one time, now well above current lake level. By the way the town is pronounced like Shar-LOT, with the emphasis on the second syllable. The river connecting the St. Lawrence River with Lake Champlain is pronounced, Rish-loo. The town Quebec town Seguenay, is pronounced, Sag-en-ay.

[greenman]

The videos which are not just announcements that there's another volcano erupting in Alaska, or that there used to more volcanic activity in the US west, are far more interesting.
This and the video about the Kerguelan plateau were excellent.
More like these please!

[whiteknightcat]

The railroad in question near Charlotte was the Rutland & Burlington Railroad, chartered in 1843 by the state of Vermont to build between Rutland and Burlington. In 1867 the company simplified its name to simply the Rutland Railroad. In the 1870's, the railroad was leased to the Central Vermont Railway (later the Vermont Central Railway which then became a subsidiary of the Grand Trunk Railway before it too was merged into Canadian National in 1923).

After a series of strikes, the government of Vermont purchased the former Rutland line south of Burlington and the new Vermont Railway was created to operate and maintain the line. The company has since taken on the operation of various other former CV routes within the state, as well as purchasing the former state-owned routes, and still operates today as a thriving shortline.

[brahmhenkins]

Fascinating story! I've been looking forward to this video since the interview with Shawn. Kudos!

[StopWhining]

Always good to see you. You have taught me the most interesting information!

[Bigearleofficial]

9th gen Vermonter here. I’m as surprised as always when Vermont is brought up by a YouTuber or someone I follow. There’s an art piece depicting a whales tale on the drive into Burlington. I never knew why…

[scillyautomatic]

"Baby Beluga" is already playing in my head.

[HyenaEmpyema]

I love your format! not too short (the shorts you release are fine too), but not 11 1/2 minutes either. and the stuff you cover is very interesting, for someone who knows nothing about geology, . you are part of what makes you tube great. thanks

[grall]

A mystery with a rational explanation. No aliens involved.

[louisegogel]

So fascinating and interesting! Thank as always for your awesome research and presentations.

Vermonter here!

[shinyuy]

Vermonter here! I always found this so cool and so fascinating. I remember going to see the fossils at the Perkins Museum at the University of Vermont. It is currently closed as they are reorganizing everything, BUT it is worth going there. There are tons of other amazing geological stories in Vermont and a ton of fun museums to explore. Thank you for covering our brave little state.