ABC News reports that the famous whale named Kavna, who inspired the song “Baby Beluga”, passed away at approximately 46 years old on August 7. The results of the autopsy indicate that the whale’s death was caused by cancerous lesions.

Workers at the Vancouver Aquarium were deeply saddened by the death of the famous whale Kavna, who became a celebrity after songwriter Raffi used her voice in his song “Baby Beluga”. The death occurred on August 7, but scientists wanted to perform an autopsy before releasing any news to the press. On August 9, they announced that Kavna was suffering from cancer and it is believed that the internal lesions she presented might have been fatal to her.

Kavna was 46 years old when she passed away; for a baby beluga whale, she was very old because this species lives between 25 and 30 years. Scientists think the cancerous affections she was suffering from were most likely caused by her advanced age. They eventually concluded that the Vancouver Aquarium whale led a healthy life without suffering from other diseases that usually affect baby beluga whales.

Raffi Cavoukian contributed to Kavna’s popularity by writing the 1979 song “Baby Beluga”. Kanvna’s voice has been added to the intro of the song, so the single will always remind us about the late whale. The songwriter told the press that he grew very fond of Kavna as soon as he met her during his first visit to the Aquarium. He further added that the instructors allowed him to get near the pool and to play with the whale, who was only 16 years old at that time. Kavna was very playful and she immediately conquered Cavoukian’s heart with her smiling face.

Raffi also took to Twitter to mourn Kavna and, hopefully, raise awareness about his 1979 song “Baby Beluga”. He told his followers that the whale will be missed by everyone who had the opportunity to meet her, including the songwriter.