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Scientists Identify Highest Number Of North Atlantic Right Whale Mother-Calf Pairs In Years

Right Whale Research
/
Center for Coastal Studies Via Associated Press

Scientists have now identified 18 pairs of mother and calf North Atlantic right whales this season, which is the highest number since 2013.

The latest pair was spotted off the coast of Nova Scotia on May 20, according to scientists at the New England Aquarium.

The number of new calves is good news for conservationists who have been studying the critically endangered species.

But scientists say the average number of calves is still down this decade compared to the decade prior, when the average number of annual mother and calf pairs was 23.