Featured Image Credit: Quebec News Tribune
There have been three carcasses of the world’s most endangered whale, the right whale, that recently washed up in the gulf of St. Lawrence. Another three have been reported drifting between New Brunswick and the Îles-de-la-Madeleine.
The population of the right whale is around 450 whales individually, but with a total of six deaths occurring in just the gulf alone, this number is starting decline and it’s a huge red flag to scientists.
“We’re talking about a high number of dead animals over a short period of time, it’s quite disturbing. There is no indication at this time to explain what happened to them,” said Josiane Cabana, director of the Quebec Marine Mammal Emergency Network’s Call Center.
The scientists know that these whales are susceptible to being caught in fishing gear or colliding with ships because of how long they surface for and because they move at slow speeds, but even with those factors, something still doesn’t add up to scientists on why there suddenly is a spike in deaths.
Even though these massive creatures weight 60 tons and measure out to 15 meters in length, these carcasses are still hard to find, according to the Quebec Network of Emergencies for Marine Animals. Most of the time, helicopters and crab fisherman will spot them and call the carcass into the Call Center.
“It feels that because they are imposing they should be easy to find, but the gulf is very wide and they are probably really in the heart, far from the coast,” said Cabana.
If you happen to come across a right whale carcass, please contact Marine Mammal Emergencies at 1-877-722-5346.