North Atlantic right whale

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  (Redirected from North Atlantic Right Whale)
Jump to: navigation, search
North Atlantic right whale[1]
Mother and calf
Size comparison against an average human
Conservation status
CITES Appendix I (CITES)[3]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Cetacea
Family: Balaenidae
Genus: Eubalaena
Species: E. glacialis
(Müller, 1776)
Binomial name
Eubalaena glacialis
Range map
Synonyms[4][5]
  • Balaena biscayensis Eschricht, 1860
  • B. glacialis Müller, 1776
  • B. glacialis glacialis Scheffer & Rice, 1963
  • B. mysticetus islandica Kerr, 1792
  • B. nordcaper Lacépède, 1804
  • Baloena glacialis Robineau, 1989
  • E. glacialis glacialis Tomilin, 1957
  • Hunterius swedenborgii Lilljeborg, 1867
  • Macleayius britannicus Gray, 1870

The North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis, which means "good, or true, whale of the ice"), is a baleen whale, one of three right whale species belonging to the genus Eubalaena,[1] all of which were formerly classified as a single species. With about 400 in existence in the western North Atlantic Ocean, and possibly extinct in the eastern North Atlantic, these whales are among the most endangered whales in the world.[6] They are protected under the US Endangered Species Act of 1973 and the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972. Vessel strikes and entanglement in fixed fishing gear are the two greatest threats to their recovery.[7] They migrate between feeding grounds in the Gulf of Maine and their winter calving areas off Georgia and Florida, an ocean area with heavy shipping traffic.

Contents

Description [edit]

Like other right whales, the North Atlantic right whale, also known as the northern right whale or black right whale,[2] is readily distinguished from other whales by the callosities on its head, a broad back without a dorsal fin, and a long arching mouth that begins above the eye. The body of the whale is very dark grey or black, occasionally with white patches on the belly. The right whale's callosities appear white due to large colonies of cyamids or whale lice.

Adult North Atlantic right whales average 13–16 m (43–52 ft) in length and weigh approximately 40,000 to 70,000 kg (44 to 77 short tons), they are slightly smaller on average than the North Pacific species.[8] The largest measured specimens have been 18.2 m (60 ft) long and 106,000 kg (230,000 lb).[citation needed] Females are larger than males.

Forty percent of a right whale's body weight is blubber, which is of relatively low density. Consequently, unlike many other species of whale, dead right whales float.

There is little data on their life span, but it is believed to be at least fifty years, and some may live more than a century.

Behavior [edit]

Vocalization [edit]

North Atlantic right whales recordings are available online.[9][10]

Reproduction [edit]

See also: Whale reproduction

They first give birth at age nine or ten after a year-long gestation; the interval between births seems to have increased in recent[when?] years and now averages three to six years. Calves are 13–15 feet (4.0–4.6 m) long at birth and weigh approximately 3,000 pounds (1,400 kg).[11]

Feeding [edit]

Right whales feed mainly on copepods and other small invertebrates such as krill, pteropods, and larval barnacles, generally by slowly skimming through patches of concentrated prey at or below the ocean surface.[2]

Taxonomy [edit]

Main article: Eubalaena

The cladogram is a tool for visualizing and comparing the evolutionary relationships between taxa. The point where a node branches off is analogous to an evolutionary branching – the diagram can be read left-to-right, much like a timeline. The following cladogram of the Balaenidae family serves to illustrate the current scientific consensus as to the relationships between the North Atlantic right whale and the other members of its family.

Family Balaenidae
 Family Balaenidae 
  Eubalaena (right whales)  

 E. glacialis North Atlantic right whale



 E. japonica North Pacific right whale


 E. australis Southern right whale



 Balaena (bowhead whales) 

 B. mysticetus bowhead whale


The right whale family, Balaenidae[12]


Another species of right whale, so-called the "Swedenborg whale" which was proposed by Emanuel Swedenborg in the 18th century, was once thought to be a North Atlantic right whale by scientific consensus. However based on later DNA analysis of those fossil bones to be claimed as of "Swedenborg whales", it was confirmed to be actually from Bowhead Whales.[13]

Whaling [edit]

Main article: History of whaling
See also: History of Basque whaling

Right whales were so-named because whalers thought they were the "right" whale to hunt. As the "right" whale continued to float long after being killed, it was possible to 'flech' or strip the whale of blubber without having to take it onboard ship. Combined with the right whale's lack of speed through water, feeding habits, and coastal habitat, they were easy to catch, even for whalers equipped only with wooden boats and hand-held harpoons.[14]

Whaling in small wooden boats with hand harpoons was a hazardous enterprise, even when hunting the "right" whale.
North Atlantic right whale skeleton found on the Thames in 2010 at Bay Wharf, Greenwich

Basques were the first to commercially hunt this species. They began whaling in the Bay of Biscay as early as the eleventh century.[15] The whales were hunted initially for whale oil but, as meat preservation technology improved, their value as food increased. Basque whalers reached eastern Canada by 1530.[16] The last Basque whaling voyages were made prior to the commencement of the Seven Years' War (1756–1763). A few attempts were made to revive the trade, but they failed. Shore whaling continued sporadically into the 19th century. It had previously been assumed that Basque whaling in eastern Canada had been the primary cause for the depletion of the sub-population in the western North Atlantic, but later genetic studies disproved this.[17][18]

Setting out from Nantucket and New Bedford in Massachusetts and from Long Island, New York, Americans took up to one hundred right whales each year, with the records including one report of 29 whales killed in Cape Cod Bay in a single day during January 1700.[19] By 1750, the North Atlantic right whale population was, for commercial purposes, depleted. Yankee whalers moved into the South Atlantic before the end of the 18th century. The population was so low by the mid-19th century that the famous Whitby whaler Rev. William Scoresby, son of the successful British whaler William Scoresby senior (1760–1829), claimed to have never seen a right whale (although he mainly hunted bowhead whales off eastern Greenland, outside the normal range of right whales).[20]

Based on back calculations using the present population size and growth rate, the population may have numbered fewer than 100 individuals by 1935.[19] As it became clear that hunting right whales was unsustainable, international protection for right whales came into effect, as the practice was banned globally in 1937. The ban was largely successful, although violations continued for several decades. Madeira took its last two right whales in 1968.

Threats [edit]

Reconstitution of a North Atlantic right whale.

For the period of 1970 to October 2006, humans have been responsible for 48% of the 73 documented mortalities of the North Atlantic right whale.[21] A 2001 forecast showed a declining population trend in the late 1990s, and indicated a high probability that North Atlantic right whales would go extinct within 200 years if the then-existing anthropogenic mortality rate was not curtailed.[22] The combined factors of small population size and low annual reproductive rate of right whales mean that a single death represents a significant increase in mortality rate. Conversely, significant reduction in mortality rate can be obtained by preventing just a few deaths. It was calculated that preventing the deaths of just two females per year would enable the population to stabilize.[22] The data suggests, therefore, that human sources of mortality may have a greater effect relative to population growth rates of North Atlantic right whales than for other whales. The principal factors believed to be retarding growth and recovery of the population are ship strikes and entanglement with fishing gear.[19]

Ship strikes [edit]

The single greatest danger to this species is injury sustained from ship strikes.[23] Between 1970 and October 2006, 37% of all recorded North Atlantic right whale deaths were attributed to collisions.[14][21] During the years 1999–2003, incidents of mortality and serious injury attributed to ship strikes averaged 1 per year. For the years 2004–2006, that number increased to 2.6.[2] Additionally, it is possible that the official figures actually underestimate the actual ship-strike mortality rates, since whales struck in offshore areas may never be sighted due to low search effort.[21]

In 2002, the International Maritime Organization shifted the location of the Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS, i.e. shipping lanes) in the Bay of Fundy (and approaches) from an area with the highest density of North Atlantic right whales to an area of lower density.[24] This was the first time the IMO had changed a TSS to help protect marine mammals.[25] In 2006, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) established a set of recommended vessel routes to reduce ship strikes in four important eastern-US right whale habitats.[26] In 2007, and again on June 1, 2009, NOAA changed the TSS servicing Boston to reduce vessel collisions with right whales and other whale species.[27] NOAA estimated that implementing an "Area To Be Avoided" (ATBA) and narrowing the TSS by 1 nautical mile (1.9 km) would reduce the relative risk of right whale ship strikes by 74% during April–July (63% from the ATBA and 11% from the narrowing of the TSS).[28]

Fishing gear entanglement [edit]

The next greatest source of human-induced mortality is entanglement in fixed fishing gear such as bottom-set groundfish gillnet gear, cod traps and lobster pots. Between 1970 and October 2006, there have been 8 instances where entanglements have been the direct cause of death of North Atlantic right whales. This represents 11% of all deaths documented during that period. From 1986 to 2005, there were a total of 61 confirmed reports of entanglements, including the aforementioned mortalities. It is likely that official figures underestimate the actual impacts of entanglement. It is believed that chronically entangled animals may in fact sink upon death, due to loss of buoyancy from depleted blubber reserves, and therefore escape detection.[21]

Beyond direct mortality, it is believed that whales that survive entanglement episodes may suffer other negative effects that may weaken it, reduce fertility, or otherwise affect it so that it is more likely to become vulnerable to further injury. Because whales often free themselves of gear following an entanglement event, scarring may be a better indicator of fisheries interaction than entanglement records. Recent[when?] analysis of the scarification of right whales showed that over 75% of whales examined during 1980-2002 were scarred at least once by fishing gear. Further research has indicated that between 14% and 51% of right whales are involved in entanglement each year.[19]

In 2007, so as to protect northern right whales from serious injury or mortality from entanglement in gillnet gear in their calving area in Atlantic Ocean waters off the southeast United States, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) revised regulations implementing the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan (ALWTRP). This plan expands the restricted area to include the waters off of South Carolina, Georgia, and Northern Florida. It also prohibits gillnet fishing or even gillnet possession in those waters for a period of five months, beginning on November 15 of each year, which coincides with the annual right whale calving season.[29]

When entanglement prevention efforts fail, disentanglement efforts occasionally succeed, despite the fact that such efforts are more frequently impossible or unsuccessful. Nevertheless, they do in fact make a significant difference. During the period 2004-2008 there were at least four documented cases of entanglements for which the intervention of disentanglement teams averted a likely death of a right whale.[19] For the first time in 2009 and again in 2011, scientists successfully used chemical sedation of an entangled whale to reduce stress on the animal and to reduce the time spent working with it. After disentangling the whale, scientists attached a satellite tracking tag, administered a dose of antibiotics to treat entanglement wounds and then another drug to reverse the sedation.[7] Despite concerns that the trauma might impair reproduction, researchers confirmed in January 2013 that three disentangled whales had given birth.[30]

Noise [edit]

A 2011 analysis of data collected in the Bay of Fundy has shown that exposure to low-frequency ship noise may be associated with chronic physiological stress in North Atlantic right whales.[31]

Naval training near calving grounds [edit]

Recently,[when?] the US Navy proposed plans to build a new undersea naval sonar training range immediately adjacent to northern right whale calving grounds in shallow waters off the Florida/Georgia border. In September 2012, legal challenges by leading environmental groups including the Natural Resources Defense Council were denied in federal court, allowing the Navy to proceed.[32][33]

Population and distribution [edit]

According to census of individual whales identified using photo-identification techniques, the latest available stock assessment data (August 2012) indicates that a minimum of 396 recognized individuals were known to be alive in the western North Atlantic in 2010, up from 361 in 2005.[6][19] In the eastern North Atlantic, the right whale population likely numbers in the low tens at best, with little known regarding their distribution and migration pattern. Scientists believe that this population may be functionally extinct.[6]

In spring, summer and autumn, the western North Atlantic population feeds in a range stretching from New York to Nova Scotia. Particularly popular feeding areas are the Bay of Fundy, the Gulf of Maine and Cape Cod Bay.[34] In winter, they head south towards Georgia and Florida to give birth.

There have been a few sightings further east over the past few decades, with several sightings close to Iceland in 2003. There was speculation that these could be the remains of a virtually extinct Eastern Atlantic stock, but examination of old whalers' records suggest that they are more likely to be strays from further west.[16] A few are sighted regularly in waters adjacent to Norway, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, and the Canary Islands.

In January 2009, one animal was sighted off Pico Island, Azores, the first confirmed appearance there since 1888. This animal was later identified as "Pico", a female from the western Atlantic group.[35] Right whales have also on rare occasion been observed in the Mediterranean Ocean. In May 1991, a petty officer of the Italian Navy happened to be in the water with his camera about 13 km (8.1 mi) off the small island of Sant' Antioco (southwestern Sardinia), when a right whale happened to swim by – his photos comprise the only confirmed sighting in the 20th century. Earlier known occurrences of right whales in the Mediterranean include the stranding of a juvenile near Taranto (southeastern Italy) in 1877 and the sighting of two (one of which was later captured) in the bay of Castiglione (Algiers) in 1888.[36] [37] and Portugal.[38] The Norway sightings appear to be of vagrants, or strays from the western Atlantic stock.[39] In 2009, right whales appeared in waters around Greenland[40] although their origin was not confirmed.[41] Prior to this, no right whales had been killed or confirmed present off the coast of Greenland for around two hundred years.[42]

In early 2009, scientists recorded a record number of births among the western North Atlantic population. 39 new calves were recorded, born off the Atlantic coast of Florida and Georgia:

"Right whales, for the first time in a long time, are doing their part: they're having the babies; they're having record numbers of babies. We need to be vigilant and still do our part to prevent the whales from being killed."

— Monica Zani, New England Aquarium, Endangered right whales appear to be on the rebound, CNN.com[11]

In contrast, 2012 appears to have been the worst calving season since 2000, with only seven calves sighted – and one of those is believed to have died. This is significantly below the annual average of 20 calves per year over the last decade.[6] As the gestation period for right whales is a year long, researchers believe that a lack of food in the whales' summer feeding grounds in the Bay of Fundy during the summer of 2010 may be linked to the poor season in 2012.[43]

Conservation status [edit]

In the United States, this species is listed as “endangered” by the NMFS under the Endangered Species Act. It is also listed as “depleted” under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

On a global level, the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS, or the “Bonn Convention”) is a multilateral treaty specializing in the conservation of migratory species, their habitats and migration routes. CMS has listed the North Atlantic right whale on Appendix I, which identifies it as a migratory species threatened with extinction.[44] This obligates member nations to strive towards strict protection of these animals, habitat conservation or restoration, mitigation of obstacles to migration, and control of other factors that might endanger them.

Additionally, CMS encourages concerted action among the range states of many Appendix I species.[45] To that end, a small portion of the eastern Atlantic population's range is covered by the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans in the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS).[46] The Atlantic area bounded on the west by a line running from Cape St. Vincent in southwest Portugal to Casablanca, Morocco, and on the east by the Straight of Gibraltar.

Another multilateral treaty, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, (CITES, or the “Washington Convention”), also lists the North Atlantic right whale on its own Appendix I. Being so listed prohibits international trade (import or export) in specimens of this species or any derivative products (e.g. food or drug products, bones, trophies), except for scientific research and other exceptional cases with a permit specific to that specimen.[3]

See also [edit]

Portal icon Cetaceans portal
Portal icon Marine life portal

References [edit]

  1. ^ a b Mead, J. G.; Brownell, R. L., Jr. (2005). "Order Cetacea". In Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. Mammal Species of the World (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 723–743. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494. 
  2. ^ a b c d Reilly, S.B., Bannister, J.L., Best, P.B., Brown, M., Brownell Jr., R.L., Butterworth, D.S., Clapham, P.J., Cooke, J., Donovan, G., Urbán, J. & Zerbini, A.N. (2012). "Eubalaena glacialis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 18 January 2013. 
  3. ^ a b "Appendices I, II and III". Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. CITES. 15 September 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2013. 
  4. ^ "ITIS Standard Report: Eubalaena glacialis (Müller, 1776)". ITIS on-line database. Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 6 September 2012. 
  5. ^ Perrin, W.F. (2012). "Eubalaena glacialis Müller, 1776". World Cetacea Database. Retrieved 29 September 2012. 
  6. ^ a b c d "North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) 5-year review: Summary and Evaluation" (PDF). Gloucester, MA: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Service. August 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2012. "The western North Atlantic population numbered at least 361 individuals in 2005 and at least 396 in 2010 (Waring et al. 2012)." 
  7. ^ a b National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (2011-01-23). "Scientists Successfully Use Sedation to Help Disentangle North Atlantic Right Whale". ScienceDaily. Retrieved 2011-01-27. 
  8. ^ Burnie D and Wilson DE (Eds.), Animal: The Definitive Visual Guide to the World's Wildlife. DK Adult (2005), ISBN 0789477645
  9. ^ Right Whale's "Up-Calls" - Cornell Bioacoustics Research
  10. ^ More Right Whale calls - "moans", "screams" and "gunshot" - Cornell Bioacoustics Research
  11. ^ a b John D. Sutter (April 3, 2009). "Endangered right whales appear to be on the rebound". CNN. Retrieved 2009-12-29. 
  12. ^ Rosenbaum, H. C., R. L. Brownell Jr.; M. W. Brown C. Schaeff, V. Portway, B. N. White, S. Malik, L. A. Pastene, N. J. Patenaude, C. S. Baker, M. Goto, P. Best, P. J. Clapham, P. Hamilton, M. Moore, R. Payne, V. Rowntree, C. T. Tynan, J. L. Bannister and R. Desalle (2000). "World-wide genetic differentiation of Eubalaena: Questioning the number of right whale species" (PDF). Molecular Ecology 9 (11): 1793–802. doi:10.1046/j.1365-294x.2000.01066.x. PMID 11091315. 
  13. ^ "Whale bones found in highway were not from mystery whale". ScienceNordic.com. February 7, 2013. Retrieved March 26, 2013. 
  14. ^ a b Ward-Geiger, L.I.; Silber, G.K., Baumstark, R.D., & Pulfer, T.L. (3 March 2005). "Characterization of Ship Traffic in Right Whale Critical Habitat" (PDF). Coastal Management (Taylor & Francis Inc.) 33 (3): 263–278. doi:10.1080/08920750590951965. ISSN 0892-0753. Retrieved 22 August 2009. 
  15. ^ Aguilar A (1986). "A review of old Basque whaling and its effect on the right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) of the North Atlantic". Rep. Int. Whal. Commn (Special Issue 10): 191–99. 
  16. ^ a b Kenney, Robert D. (2002). "North Atlantic, North Pacific and Southern Right Whales". In William F. Perrin, Bernd Wursig and J. G. M. Thewissen. The Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals. Academic Press. pp. 806–813. ISBN 0-12-551340-2. 
  17. ^ Rastogi, T., Brown, M. W., Mcleod, B. A., Frasier, T. R., Grenier, R., Cumbaa, S. L., Nadarajah, J. and White, B. N. 2004. Genetic analysis of 16th-century whale bones prompts a revision of the impact of Basque whaling on right and bowhead whales in the western North Atlantic. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 2004 - 8(10): pp.1647-1654, 10.1139/z04-146
  18. ^ Frasier, T. R., Mcleod, B. A., Bower, R., Brown, M., and White, B. N.(2007) "Right Whales Past and Present as Revealed by their Genes" in: Urban Whale: North Atlantic Right Whales at the Crossroads pp. 200-231, edited by Kraus, S. and Rolland, R.
  19. ^ a b c d e f Waring, G.T.; Josephson E, Maze-Foley K, Rosel, PE, Editors (December 2010). "NORTH ATLANTIC RIGHT WHALE (Eubalaena glacialis): Western Atlantic Stock" (PDF). U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico Marine Mammal Stock Assessments. NOAA Tech Memo (National Marine Fisheries Service). NMFS NE 219: 8–18. 
  20. ^ Scarff JE (1986b). "Occurrence of the barnacles Coronula diadema, C. reginae and Cetopirus complanatus (Cirripedia) on right whales" (PDF). Scientific Reports of the Whale Research Institute 37: 129–153. 
  21. ^ a b c d Fisheries and Oceans Canada (2007). "Recovery potential assessment for right whale (Western North Atlantic population)" (PDF). Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat Science Advisory Report 2007/027. Retrieved 17 June 2011. 
  22. ^ a b Fujiwara, M.; Caswell, H. (29 November 2001). "Demography of the endangered North Atlantic right whale" (PDF). Nature 414 (6863): 537–541. doi:10.1038/35107054. PMID 11734852. Retrieved 17 June 2011. 
  23. ^ Vanderlaan & Taggart (2007). "Vessel collisions with whales: the probability of lethal injury based on vessel speed" (PDF). Mar Mam. Sci. Retrieved 2008-05-10. 
  24. ^ http://www.nmri.go.jp/safe/imo/nav48/3/NAV48-3-5.pdf
  25. ^ http://www.coastalstudies.org/what-we-do/public-policy/bay-of-fundy.htm
  26. ^ http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/shipstrike/routes.htm
  27. ^ "North Atlantic Right Whale Ship Strike Reduction". Office of Protected Resources – NOAA Fisheries. Retrieved 2009-08-22. 
  28. ^ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (2009-05-26). "Changes in Vessel Operations May Reduce Risk of Endangered Whale Shipstrikes". Retrieved 2009-08-22. 
  29. ^ NOAA (June 25, 2007). "NOAA announces rule to protect North Atlantic right whales from gillnet entanglement in Southeast U.S.". Retrieved 17 June 2011. 
  30. ^ "3 endangered right whales rescued from fishing gear reach rare milestone of motherhood". Associated Press (FOX News). January 24, 2013. 
  31. ^ Rolland et al. "Evidence that ship noise increases stress in right whales". Proceedings of the Royal Society B. The Royal Society. Retrieved 11 February 2012. 
  32. ^ Whale Defenders Lose Navy Training Challenge, courthousenews.com, accessed on 9/20/2012
  33. ^ "Right Whales Wronged: Judge allows Navy to expand sonar use in calving ground". Natural Resources Defense Council. September 10, 2012. 
  34. ^ "Endangered whale begins to recover after Bay of Fundy shipping lanes moved". Retrieved 6 July 2012. 
  35. ^ "First North Atlantic right whale sighting in Azores since 1888". WildlifeExtra.com. 
  36. ^ Marine Mammal Society Newsletter, Winter 1996 (Vol 4, No 4).
  37. ^ Notarbartolo di Sciara, G., E. Politi, A. Bayed, P.-C. Beaubrun and A. Knowlton (1998). "A winter cetacean survey off Southern Morocco, with a special emphasis on suitable habitats for wintering right whales". Sci. Rep. Int. Whaling Commission, SC/49/O3, 48: 547–550. 
  38. ^ Martin AR, Walker FJ (1996-05-16). "SIGHTING OF A RIGHT WHALE (EUBALAENA GLACIALIS) WITH CALF OFF S. W. PORTUGAL". Marine Mammal Science 13 (1): 139. doi:10.1111/j.1748-7692.1997.tb00617.x. Retrieved 2006-10-26. 
  39. ^ Jacobsen KO, Marx M, Øien N (2003-05-21). "TWO-WAY TRANS-ATLANTIC MIGRATION OF A NORTH ATLANTIC RIGHT WHALE (EUBALAENA GLACIALIS)". Marine Mammal Science 20 (1): 161. doi:10.1111/j.1748-7692.2004.tb01147.x. Retrieved 2006-10-26.  More than one of |work= and |journal= specified (help)
  40. ^ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (May 20, 2009). "NOAA Expedition Hears Endangered North Atlantic Right Whales off Greenland". 
  41. ^ Newman, Dennis (May 20, 2009). "OSU Researchers Discover 'Extinct' Whales". Natural Oregon. 
  42. ^ SaraJean (2009-05-25). "Greenland: New Home for Right Whales". Retrieved 2009-12-29. 
  43. ^ Poor Calving Season for Right Whales, Savannah Morning News Savannahnow.com, April 1, 2012
  44. ^ "Appendices I and II". Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS). Amended by the Conference of the Parties in 1985, 1988, 1991, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2005, 2008 and 2011. Effective 23 February 2012. p. 1. Retrieved February 20, 2013. 
  45. ^ Official website of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS or Bonn Convention)
  46. ^ Official website of the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans in the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area

External links [edit]

 This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. (May 2013)
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Eubalaena glacialis
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=North_Atlantic_right_whale&oldid=554594184"