North Atlantic Right Whale Update
March 2024
Wild Cumberland is heartbroken to share that wildlife officials found a dead juvenile North Atlantic right whale on Cumberland Island on Sunday, March 3, 2024.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and whale researchers confirmed that the juvenile was identified as the calf belonging to Juno (#1612).
The calf died from injuries to its head, neck, and lips, attributed to a vessel between 35-57 feet in length. Its carcass had been heavily scavenged by sharks by the time it was discovered on Cumberland Island.
This is the second right whale calf fatality in Georgia this season; the first calf was found floating dead near Tybee Island, also killed by a vessel strike. Currently, only vessels over 65 feet long are required to reduce their speeds to 10 knots within Dynamic Management Areas (DMAs), or voluntary “slow zones,” during North Atlantic right whale migration seasons — yet NOAA has estimated that 40% of vessel strikes are from boats or ships between 35 and 65 feet.
Some Movement
In response to the recent calf fatalities, NOAA has made two announcements to advance their commitment to restoring and conserving the North Atlantic right whale population:
- On March 4, 2024, NOAA announced a partnership with NASA with $500,000 of funding to develop technologies, such as satellite tags and passive acoustic monitoring, to improve North Atlantic right whale restoration and conservation.
- On March 6, 2024, NOAA advanced the final rule to expand the season speed limits and size thresholds in DMAs, which is now under review in the Office of Management and Budget.
There are approximately 360 North Atlantic right whales remaining on our planet — including just 70 females of reproductive age. The whales’ only known calving grounds are located just off Cumberland Island.
In August 2022, NOAA conducted a 90-day public comment period on a proposed vessel strike rule that would regulate boat and ship speeds for vessels between 35 and 65 feet in length within DMAs. Wildlife experts believe these will reduce right whale fatalities (and likely have benefits for other marine species, including sea turtles).
Take Further Action
NOAA may finally advance the vessel speed rule, but to save this species, we must take additional actions now.
Ask your elected officials to support additional efforts including:
- Expanding fisheries transparency and monitoring, requiring public tracking of fishing vessels;
- Reducing the amount of vertical lines used in fixed-gear fisheries in Atlantic waters;
- Implementing effective and dynamic, real-time management areas that remove threats to right whales when they are present;
- Modifying fishing gear and practices to reduce the likelihood and severity of entanglements through the development of ropeless gear;
- Providing long-term funding and capacity building for research, monitoring and risk reduction; and
- Support the current administration’s 30 x 30 Initiative to protect 30% of America’s lands and waters by 2030. This presents a unique opportunity to envelope DMAs within new and expanded marine sanctuaries. (Overlapping boundaries of legal protections would allow federal and state regulatory authorities to consolidate and share resources and build regulatory capacity to better enforce vessel speed limits.)
Our friends at Oceana have a form you can customize with your own message: https://oceana.ly/3uo9dKC
View whale data anytime at whalemap.org.