A North Atlantic right whale seen earlier this year off St. Simons with its newborn calf was found dead off Virginia on Saturday.
The endangered whale, identified as #1950, was more than 35 years old and had given birth to six calves. Her newest calf was not seen near the carcass. The death of the mother whale brings to 40 the number of right whales that have died since 2017 in what the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration calls an Unusual Mortality Event . While her cause of death has not been determined, the main causes of right whale deaths and injuries are entanglements in fishing gear and vessel strikes in both U.S. and Canadian waters, both long-standing threats to the recovery of the species. The calf of #1950 is also considered a seriously injured dependent calf in the UME due to the death of its mother. A whale calf generally stays with the mother for at least a year.
A company conducting Mid-Atlantic whale surveys for the Navy on Saturday discovered the dead whale floating about 50 miles east of Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge in Virginia. NOAA Fisheries and its partners towed the whale to shore for a necropsy. The whale carcass was scavenged by sharks.
North Atlantic right whales are highly endangered, with fewer than 360 individuals remaining. Only about 70 are females of reproductive age.
Right whales were named for being the “right” whale for whalers to kill. They swim slowly and hug the shore, habits that put them in the path of many vessels. Right whales, which eat tiny crustaceans, feed in the waters off New England and Canada. Females migrate to the warmer waters off the Carolinas, Georgia and northeast Florida to give birth. Nineteen calves have been documented in the Southeast this calving season, but at least three others besides #1950’s calf are presumed dead.
NOAA Fisheries has proposed expanded protections for right whales that would add boats from 35-65 feet long into existing speed regulations that already slow larger vessels to 10 mph when whales are expected to be present. The proposed rules, now in a final federal review, have met with resistance from the recreational boating industry and from harbor pilots backed by U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, (R-St. Simons) who represents Coastal Georgia.
Environmental groups reacted quickly Tuesday to the news of another dead right whale.
“These whales are not dying because of natural causes,” Gib Brogan, campaign director at Oceana in the United States said in a prepared statement. “They are dying preventable deaths as a result of collisions with boats and entanglements in fishing gear, and our government isn’t doing anything to stop it. How many more deaths must this endangered species face before President Biden takes action? President Biden: it’s time to take the conservation of right whales seriously and issue the proposed updates to the 2008 vessel speed rule immediately.”
Kathleen Collins, Senior Marine Campaign Manager with the International Fund for Animal Welfare said, “2024 is poised to be one the deadliest years for the North Atlantic right whale. As this species races towards extinction, our government continues to be distracted by partisan politics. Science-based regulations are the only solution to prevent the human-caused demise of the right whale.”
The Tide brings regular notes and observations on news and events by The Current staff.
You must be logged in to post a comment.