Two endangered right whales seen entangled off Massachusetts; young male "likely to die"
NANTUCKET - In what could be another blow to the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale population, scientists said Wednesday that they recently spotted two entangled whales about 50 miles southeast of Nantucket, Massachusetts.
One of the whales is a 3-year-old male identified as #5110, and he is "likely to die from this injury," biologists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Fisheries division said. He was first spotted as a calf in 2021 and had just been seen swimmingly freely this April in Cape Cod Bay.
"This whale has a thick line that passes once across his head and once across his back," NOAA said about the sighting that happened on Dec. 9.
Entangled female right whale may not be able to reproduce
The other entangled whale is #4120, a 13-year-old female. Researchers flying overhead saw "two lines exiting the left side of her mouth, with both lines extending a half to two thirds of the way down the body," NOAA said.
Biologists who reviewed her entanglement do not believe it will be fatal. But experts at the New England Aquarium are concerned she may not be able to add to the struggling species' numbers.
"This is #4120's third documented entanglement, which may impact her ability to reproduce," the aquarium said in a statement.
NOAA said that because the sighting happened so far from shore, they were unable to launch a crew by boat to reach the whales. But they say they will try to monitor the whales and figure out if it's possible to untangle them.
Entanglement danger to right whales
There are estimated to be 372 right whales left in the world, scientists said in October. That's a small increase from 2020 when the population hit a low of 358.
The biggest threats to the species are boat strikes and fishing gear entanglement.
"North Atlantic right whales continue to be entangled at levels that could push this critically endangered species to extinction," senior New England Aquarium scientist Amy Knowlton said in a statement. "Serious injuries and deaths of right whales are preventable and highlight the importance of implementing effective changes to reduce ongoing threats from fishing gear, including broader adoption of ropeless or 'on demand' gear and weaker ropes."
Massachusetts on Wednesday enacted a new law sponsored by Republican state Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr of Gloucester that gives the state authority to remove abandoned fishing gear from its waters. Abandoned or lost fishing gear had been considered private property under Massachusetts law, which prevented it from being cleared away.
