350-400 Right Whales

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Tuesday, March 17. 2009

I saw a Right Whale with calf from a schooner in the Gulf of Maine about 20 years ago. I had no idea there were so few of them, or that the european Right Whale population had been long hunted to extinction.

Along our American coast, with a few conservation efforts, their numbers are slowly recovering. Still, 350-400 is about as close to extinction as a species can get. Whales are as easy to kill as cows.

Magnificent critters.

Photo from the NYT article.

Posted by Bird Dog in Natural History and Conservation, Our Essays at 10:09 | Comments (10) | Trackbacks (0)

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Yours to do as you will of course but why did you delete that bit of 'poetry' down below? Especially considering what you left up. The 'nics' were chosen to be obvious and were just carrying on the 'Bar Jokes' on Jappy. Certainly not attacking or stalking anyone. Is there now a new policy for 'nics' as you alluded to a few days ago and that I asked you about. I'd like to know when I've been 'bad' or 'good'. Rules are fine if I know what the hell they are.

#1 Luther McLeod on 2009-03-17 10:53 (Reply)

No idea what you are referring to, Luther.

#1.1 Bird Dog on 2009-03-17 11:03 (Reply)

They were deleted because you didn't post them under your name. But they came from your IP address.

#1.2 Chris on 2009-03-17 11:05 (Reply)

Chris,

I was 'bill' in our ode to "Love on the Rock" and I was not deleted. Does your site do it automatically, or are you all having to watch it? (Doesn't matter. I'm glad for it.)

I'm glad you're doing it but a little sorry for last night's silliness as we went out of our way to make dumb nics that would fit our ode. :) We didn't capitalize the names and chose common names. Intent was harmless for sure, but I wish we'd known before hand. I hate to waste great poetry.

:}

`

#1.2.1 Meta on 2009-03-17 11:21 (Reply)

We are still tuning the system. There has been a number of requests to enforce who is who on the site. The system got a little carried away this morning. Sorry. That wasn't what we were targeting.

#1.2.1.1 Chris on 2009-03-17 11:30 (Reply)

I, for one, welcome our new 'overlords'. :)

Thanks for the explanation.

#1.2.1.1.1 Luther McLeod on 2009-03-17 11:43 (Reply)

No need to apologize. Well, except for trashing brilliant verse. :)

Keep up the good work.

Thanks.
`

#1.2.1.1.2 Meta on 2009-03-17 11:46 (Reply)

Thanks for the answer Chris... I appreciate it. But again, an answer to my question yesterday would have saved everyone a lot of trouble. At least now we all know.

#2 Luther McLeod on 2009-03-17 11:11 (Reply)

Large, slow-moving, slow-breeding animals tend to have small numbers. Right whales will likely expand their numbers if they are left alone to do so, but they breed at a rate approaching that of the Japanese and the European Union. There are other predators than humans who, I'm sure, take right whale calves if not adults. Same problem tends to follow the other baleen whales, since they all breed slowly and can't bite a predator chasing their young. I believe (I could easily be wrong) that sperm whales are generally better at attacking predators. I know that whalers feared sperm whales far more than the baleens.

#3 Geoff on 2009-03-17 14:23 (Reply)

Regarding European right whales...it would be great if the Western Atlantic population were to continue to expand so that one day a population find its way back to European waters, if food is there. It will take more in the way of open water for the long-gone gray whales of both North America's and Europes's atlantic shores, which were plentiful, until they were hunted out by the late 1700s. They would have to make it from the North Pacific's Bering Sea across the arctic shoreline, as habitat was available, to once again re-inhabit the North Atlantic. Ditto the sea otters/sea mink and in all likelyhood a number of other once endemic species and populations. Global warming and shifting climates do that for species sometimes. Change, y'know.

#4 doug l on 2009-03-17 16:08 (Reply)

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Tuesday, March 17. 2009

350-400 Right Whales