North Atlantic Right Whale

The North Atlantic Right Whale (Eubalaena glacialis) is a large baleen whale that feeds almost entirely on copepods, tiny crustaceans it strains from the water in dense aggregations near the surface. Adults typically reach 45 to 55 feet in length and can weigh up to 70 tons, with distinctive pale callosities on their heads that researchers use to identify individual animals. Their range spans the western North Atlantic, from calving grounds off the coasts of Florida and Georgia in winter to feeding grounds in the Gulf of Maine, Bay of Fundy, and Gulf of St. Lawrence in warmer months.

The species is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, with the population estimated at fewer than 360 individuals as of recent surveys, including fewer than 70 reproductively active females. Entanglement in fishing gear, particularly vertical lines used in lobster and snow crab fisheries, and vessel strikes are the two leading causes of human-caused mortality and serious injury. Because right whales reproduce slowly, with females calving roughly once every three to ten years, the population has little capacity to absorb even a handful of additional deaths annually. Climate-driven shifts in copepod distribution have also pushed whales into new areas that overlap with previously lower-risk shipping lanes and fishing zones.