The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has confirmed the death of another North Atlantic Right Whale — the third this year.
Jennifer Goebel is a spokesperson with NOAA Fisheries' greater Atlantic region. She says the NOAA vessel, the Henry Bigelow, spotted the whale about 100 miles east of Nantucket on Sunday.
“The carcass is severely decomposed, but the photographs show multiple wounds that are consistent with entanglement at some point in its life, although we can't say whether or not that was the cause of death,” Goebel says.
Entanglement in fishing gear is a prevalent cause of death for right whales.
Only about 450 of the whales are still living, so every death is highly significant for the future of the species. No calves have been spotted this year, and it's not known if the dead whale discovered this weekend is a male or a female.
“Of the about 450 whales that we think are in the population, there are fewer than 100 females of breeding age,” says Goebel. “And it seems there are fewer females than males, and births are declining.”
