Right Whale Calf Found Dead

On July 2 a right whale calf was found dead 23 nautical miles from Southern Head, Grand Manan. Allied Whale from the College of the Atlantic photographed and took some samples but the badly decomposed calf was not recovered. The carcass had propeller cuts but without a full necropsy it is not known if this was pre- or post-mortem. It is also not known at this time whose calf this is but everyone will be keeping a lookout for a mother without a calf.

Not many right whales have been seen yet in the Bay of Fundy. The New England Aquarium team will begin surveys August 3 or so depending on weather and a better picture of where and how many right whales are in the Bay will be available.

Right Whales in the Bay of Fundy

Possible photos of #2642 and her second calf taken by June Swift, Brier Island, Nova Scotia. Identification is tentative.

Fog was been a constant in July as it often is with the land warming up quickly and the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy remaining cool. The hot, humid air mass creates dense fog when it moves out over cold water. As a result we haven't been able to survey for right whales in the Grand Manan Basin, concentrating on an area closer to Grand Manan where humpback, fin and minke whales have been found.

However, there have been some sightings of right whales along the Nova Scotia coast from the Brier Island and area whale watch companies. At least two mothers and their calves have been seen with tentative identifications of the mothers as #2642, the daughter of Kleenex and #2605, Smoke, daughter of #1705, Phoenix. Both whales have had one previous calf. The first mother calf pair were seen on June 20 and the second on June 22. The second pair were seen from shore but June Swift. Check out her blog postings at http://brierisland.blogspot.com/ or the blog for Brier Island Whale and Seabird Cruises http://brierislandwhales.blogspot.com/

Right Whales in the Bay of Fundy - May sightings

I received a report of 5-6 right whales on May 17 from the Grand Manan Fishermen's Association Whale Hotline. The whales were seen south of the island by a lobster fishermen. The Whale Hotline was established after a large number of right whales lingered in the Bay north of Grand Manan in 2006. The information goes out to fishermen so they can be alerted to the presence of right whales in areas where they may be fishing. They are asked to voluntarily avoid the area where the right whales are or to avoid hauling or setting gear in that area until the whales move on. They are also encouraged to report any entangled whales and a disentanglement team may be able to respond, depending on weather conditions.

May is a bit early for right whale sightings in the Bay of Fundy but not unheard of. It does mean that lobster fishermen have to be more diligent in watching for right whales to avoid entangling them. There has been a lot of work in this regard and things like the Whale Hotline, a voluntary Code of Conduct, articles in fishing newsletters, and presentations on disentangling whales help with this.

Great South Channel Area to Be Avoided

Following the success of the implementation of a seasonal voluntary Area to Be Avoided (ATBA) over right whale habitat on Roseway Basin from June 1 through December 31, south of the southern tip of Nova Scotia, a new Area to Be Avoided has been established around the Great South Channel/Georges Bank right whale habitat from April 1 through July 31. This area is east of Cape Cod and is of great importance to right whales, including many who are never seen in the Bay of Fundy. The Northeast US Right Whale Sighting Advisory System shows the location of this newest ATBA http://rwhalesightings.nefsc.noaa.gov/

By having large vessels voluntarily avoid these areas where right whales are known to congregate, the risk of the whales being hit by a large vessels decreases significantly. Vessel strikes are the leading cause of accidental death in right whales.

Wart Free of Entangling Gear

Wart, #1140 who carried rope through her mouth and wrapped around her rostrum for two years is now gear free, thanks to the Center for Coastal Studies and the NOAA aerial survey team who coordinated the cutting of the rostrum wrap which freed the ends of the rope (see May 2 posting). With the rostrum wrap cut, the rope slipped out of her baleen and she was photographed by the NOAA aerial team surveying the Great South Channel gear free. Her mouth has a lot of scarring from the chaffing of the rope but she is otherwise healthy. Let's hope she remains gear free.

Wart partially disentangled

The NOAA aerial survey team spotted Wart #1140 on May 1 in the Great South Channel off Cape Cod. The Center for Coastal Studies team were already on the water and proceeded to the location. The plane was able to stay on site through most of the disentanglement attempt and helped to keep the boat team on Wart as she actively avoided all attempts to get close to her. This avoidance behaviour is very common in right whales and complicates getting near a whale to remove entangling lines but is inherent to right whales to avoid harassment. Their strength and endurance that allows them to feed for hours on end with their mouth open straining zooplankton from the water, also prevents them from tiring easily when pursued. Unfortunately, it was not enough to protect them from the determination of the whalers.

Using a new cutting device, the disentanglement team eventually were able to cut the two lines over Wart's rostrum between her large lower lips and the line fell away. Sinking line still exits the mouth but when the plane had to return to shore for fuel, the boat team were unable to get close enough to try to grapple the sinking line. They were able to get clear photographs that the rostrum line was gone. If Wart is seen again, she will be assessed as to the remaining entanglement. It is hoped that with the two lines gone from the rostrum, the other line may work its way out of the mouth but it is not known how the line is held in the baleen.

Great work to the NOAA aerial crew and the Center for Coastal Studies disentanglement team!

Wart seen again

Wart was seen east of Cape Cod on April 21, 2010 and the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies spent three hours with her to see if they could cut off the wrap of rope that goes over her rostrum, in and out of her mouth. Unfortunately Wart spent most of that time feeding just below the surface or breaching so nothing could be done about her entanglement. She still looks healthy even though she has had the rope entanglement for two years, since at least March 6, 2008 when she was spotted in Cape Cod Bay. This is the third time in 2010 that she has been seen.