right whales

A coalition of conservation groups asked that the federal government implement parts of a proposal this winter, when right whales typically travel from calving grounds in the southeast to feeding grounds near New England and Canada.

North Atlantic right whales number fewer than 350, according to federal fisheries estimates.

Maine's lobster fishery will have much longer to comply with federal rules aimed at reducing the risks to the endangered North Atlantic right whale population, if a government spending bill clears the U.S. Congress this week.

The proposal would ban grocery chain Whole Foods — which recently paused sales of Maine lobster over concerns about the industry's threat to endangered right whales — from participating in two state tax programs.

A district court judge in Washington D.C. has granted a two-year extension for the National Marine Fisheries Service to issue a new rule aimed at reducing right whale deaths from entanglements in lobster gear.

The North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium estimates that only 340 North Atlantic right whales remain. This represents a continued decline in numbers, though the rate of decline appears to have slowed over the past few years.

New federal data on north Atlantic right whales paint a grim picture of the challenges ahead in restoring the endangered population.

Looking at numbers from 2018, researchers calculated that of 142 female right whales, only 72 could bear young.

Maine lobstermen are already facing gear changes and the seasonal closure of nearly 1,000 square miles of fishing grounds. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says that should reduce whale mortality by about 46% but the agency is looking for further risk reductions of another 44%.

Feds have scheduled a Portland hearing this week over right whale protection efforts.