The story of a species' decline is usually a slow-moving one. Not so for North Atlantic right whales this summer. Eight individuals have died in Canadian waters in the past two months, prompting alarm from researchers and an unprecedented response from Canadian officials. Here's where things stand right now:
- Another North Atlantic right whale - the eighth in just a few weeks - has been found dead in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans also confirmed that one other whale was seen entangled in fishing gear. Last week, a source at the NOAA's Northeast Fishery Science Center put the number of currently entangled animals at three.
- Disentanglement efforts have resumed ... mostly. Disentanglement operations were suspended following the death of a Canadian man, Joe Howlett, during a rescue operation on July 10th. NOAA announced on Tuesday that disentanglements could resume for all species of large whales except right whales. They subsequently clarified that attempts to disentangle North Atlantic right whales were not prohibited, but would be considered on a case-by-case basis. However, Canadian officials say right whale entanglement efforts are currently on hold.
- Snow crab fishery shut down. Canadian officials closed parts of the snow crab fishery two days early in an effort to reduce the risk of further entanglements in fishing gear. The fishery had already harvested 98% of its quota. Canadian Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc also said they would be reviewing the fishery and could make changes to next year's season to avoid another summer like this one.
It should be noted that not all of the eight recent deaths were due to entanglements. The Gulf of St. Lawrence is a major shipping thruway, and two animals showed evidence of blunt force trauma.