Discovery of rare baby right whale off Canada gives scientists cause for celebration
The Globe and Mail · Patrick Whittle ·
It puts the number of baby right whales discovered from the most recent birthing season at 24, the most productive year for the whales since 2009
It would seem difficult to miss a 6,804-kilogram baby, but for months scientists who study rare whales did just that, and now they couldn’t be happier.
Researchers in Canada captured images of an unidentified baby North Atlantic right whale, one of the rarest sea mammals in the world, off Anticosti Island in Quebec in September. Scientists with the New England Aquarium in Boston said this week that after analyzing photos and data about right whales, they have determined it was a calf likely born months ago that went unseen during winter surveys for the giant animals.
The discovery puts the number of baby right whales discovered from the most recent birthing season at 24, the most productive year for the whales since 2009 and the fourth-highest count on record, the aquarium said. The whales number only about 380 in the world, and their population has fallen since 2010.
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