A rare right whale, found
dead just east of Grand Manan Island, was towed to Campobello
Island and landed on Galley Beach at Head Harbour late Monday
night, July 24, so that researchers could study it. The
whale, estimated to be a year old or younger, had been hit
by a large ship and had at least 13 propeller cuts on its
body from the collision. Assisting at the scene on Campobello
were representatives of the Canadian Department of Fisheries
and Oceans as well as the local RCMP officer.
The female calf was 31 feet
long and weighed about eight tons. At birth, right whales
weigh about one ton and are usually weaned at about one
year of age. Efforts were under way to determine if the
whale had been spotted before in the annual whale census
done by researchers, who use the distinct pattern of markings
on the head to identify individual whales.
The whale was first spotted
floating off the east coast of Grand Manan Island by a whale-watch
tour operated by Quoddy Link Marine of St. Andrews. A small,
inflatable boat run by George Morrison towed it a short
distance and then Mac Greene of the New Brunswick whale
rescue team towed it the rest of the way to Campobello with
his tour boat from Island Cruises.
Amy Knowlton of the Right
Whale study team at the New England Aquarium was in the
area with her staff preparing for the annual census of whales
in the region. She was involved with the necropsy of the
whale, similar to an autopsy performed on a human being,
which was being led by Bill McLellan of the University of
North Carolina at Wilmington. Among other information they
hope to find out is whether the whale survived the collision
with the ship or died immediately. Inspection of the internal
organs, which would likely show evidence of infection if
the animal survived for some time, is expected to provide
a definitive answer. Other scientists involved in studying
the animal are from the Atlantic Veterinary College and
Allied Whale, the marine stranding response program of the
College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor. Among the more esoteric
areas of study, whale lice are being collected for study
by Vicki Roundtree, who, at her University of Utah lab,
specializes in the three species of lice endemic to whales.
Several of the academic researchers
expressed concern about the killing of the baby whale. Right
whales are among the most endangered species in the world,
with only 300 to 400 estimated to be left, and the loss
of a potential breeding female could be seriously damaging
to attempts to support the population. Also, questions were
raised because no ship reported the collision. "This
would not have gone unnoticed on board the vessel,"
explained one of the researchers. "No matter how large
the ship, if you collide with a nine-ton whale, you know
you've hit something significant." She went on to say
that a finback whale had been speared on the bow of a ship
several years back. "If the LNG terminal is opened,
there will be more traffic, and more traffic inevitably
means more of this," referring to the killing of the
whale, the researcher said. "This is an incredibly
rare animal, and we can't afford to lose them this way."
It was expected that, after
the samples had been taken from the whale, the skeleton
would be towed to Grand Manan to be placed in the museum
there.
Canada has adopted a right
whale recovery plan that, among other goals, aims to reduce
incidental deaths caused by ship strikes and entanglements
with fishing gear. The country has rerouted shipping lanes
in the Bay of Fundy to reduce the risk of ship strikes.
In the U.S., the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)
is proposing regulations to reduce the risk of collisions
between right whales and ocean-going vessels. The rule proposes
a vessel speed restriction of 10 knots or less during certain
times along the U.S. east coast. Speed restrictions would
apply to vessels that are 65 feet in length or greater,
except federal agency vessels. NMFS is seeking comments
on the regulations until August 25.
The North Atlantic right whale’s
range includes winter calving and nursery areas in coastal
waters off the southeastern U.S., and summer feeding grounds
in New England waters and north to the Bay of Fundy and
Scotian shelf. |