Posts Tagged ‘North atlantic right whale’
Nearly 40,000 square miles of protection granted for last 500 Right Whales
WASHINGTON— In response to the efforts of conservation and wildlife protection groups, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) today protected 39,414 square miles of ocean as critical habitat for North Atlantic right whales. Only about 500 of the critically endangered whales exist today, and without additional protections the species faces a serious risk of extinction.…
Read MoreFirst North Atlantic right whale calves of season sighted
The first two North Atlantic right whale calves of this winter have been seen off the coast of Florida. With less than 500 whales surviving, every addition to the population is of vital importance. Entanglement in fishing gear and collisions with boat traffic are the two major threats to this species, which saw its numbers…
Read MoreWeaker ropes could save whales from entanglement
A new study in the US has concluded that switching fishing gear to use ropes that break at 1700 pounds or less, could reduce potentially life-threatening entanglements for whales by over 70%. At the same time the ropes would still be effective for many types of fishing activities. The study examined live and dead whales…
Read MoreA Long Road in the Right (whale) Direction
Thank you National Marine Fisheries Services! On October 15th the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) officially denied a request to reduce protections from ship strikes designed to protect the fewer than 500 remaining critically endangered North Atlantic right whales. Since 2004, WDC has been championing a rule which mandates that vessels 20 meters or larger to slow to 10kts…
Read MoreJust A Whale? I don’t think so.
Here in WDC’s North American office we always laugh when someone asks us what a typical day is like. The reason we laugh is because on any given day anything can come up, and last week was a perfect example of that. We got a call from the harbormaster here in Plymouth on Wednesday about…
Read MoreSome unusual whale sightings and a reminder of why we do what we do
My visit to the WDC North America office this past week was a tangible reminder of why Whale and Dolphin Conservation exists as an organization and how important it is for us to continue our efforts to protect whales and dolphins. An opportunity to take a trip out to sea last Thursday morning in…
Read MoreNew technology to aid right whale research
Scientists from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia and other researchers are using the latest advancements in technology this summer to track one of the world’s most endangered whales – the North Atlantic right whale. Hunted close to extinction, 80 years of protection have only seen the whale population slowly recover to around 500. Collisions…
Read MoreRecord number of endangered whales close to shore – a mixed blessing
Over the past two weeks, more than 70 of the 500 remaining North Atlantic right whales have been within meters of the shores of Plymouth, Massachusetts, home to WDC’s North American office. This unique opportunity for residents and visitors to see one of the world’s most endangered whales is cause for both celebration and concern. …
Read MoreResearch suggests up to three million whales were slaughtered in last century
Researchers in the US have released a study that estimates the number of whales killed by industrial hunting in the last century is close to three million. This global slaughter is thought to be the largest cull of any creature (total biomass) in human history. The devastation is still being felt today. Some estimates indicate…
Read MoreSaving North Atlantic right whale habitats means saving the whales – Part 2
With only about 500 individuals the North Atlantic right whale remains on the endangered species list, even though there has been no whaling of this species since the mid-1900s. This was the first whale to be caught commercially, initially by the Basques beginning in the 11th Century. At least 5,500 right whales, and possibly twice…
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