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The carcass of a North Atlantic right whale is seen off of Edgartown, Mass. in Martha’s Vineyard – National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
A 12th North Atlantic right whale has been found dead, this time in Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries.
In an interview with Global News, NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Region spokesperson Jennifer Goebel said the whale was found Tuesday floating off of Edgartown. She said the Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank Commission sent photos to NOAA Fisheries which confirmed it was a North Atlantic right whale.
The International Fund for Animal Welfare, located on Cape Cod, Mass., is performing a necropsy Wednesday to determine what caused the death of another endangered right whale. Goebel added that it would not take place on a public beach in the area, but would not say where due to privacy reasons.
Through the photos provided by the commission, Goebel said they were able to confirm it was a right whale.
As of last Thursday, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans said it would bring all resources necessary to protect the right whales after 10 had died in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
Earlier this spring, Goebel said there was also a right whale that died after being stranded in Cape Cod. In an email, she said final results of the necropsy report have not been received but the initial analysis was the death was due to the whale being struck by a vessel.
DFO Minister Dominic LeBlanc said last week it’s believed 80 to 100 right whales are currently in the gulf and the DFO says in total, there are approximately only 525 right whales in the world.
Various precautions have also been taken as a result of the deaths, including asking mariners to slow their ships to 10 knots when passing through the areas and limiting the amount of rope they have on the water. LeBlanc said collisions with ships and fishing gear entanglements are major threats to the whales.
During one entanglement last month, however, a veteran fisherman from Campobello, N.B. was killed while freeing a whale.
This incident prompted Canada and the United States to temporarily suspend efforts to rescue entangled whales.
Courtesy of globalnews.ca
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