RIGHT WHALES : A STRIKING CASE FOR MORE HELP

Northern right whale populations have yet to recover from four centuries of harpooring. Perhaps 300 exist, swimming from New England waters along the coast to give birth off Georgia and Flordia. There they meet oceangoing vessels – too often with results like this wounded flke. “Since 1970 we have recorded 45 northern right whale deaths, including 16 struck by ships,” says Scott Kraus of the New England Aquarium in Boston.

After six whales died in early 1996, protective measures were increased. The national Marine Fisheries Service now directs all vessels and aircraft to stay 500 yards from this species. Fishermen and many lobstermen must modify gear so that lines break if a whale becomes entangled. The Navy, which has long conducted training exercises from its base at Mayport, Florida, has moved some activities farther offshore, and its ships are avoiding the calving grounds as much as possible.

“But we need to figure out how to keep commercial shipping vessels from hitting whales,” Says Kraus.