Researchers were both surprised and thrilled to find a previously unnoticed baby right whale swimming alongside its mother off the coast of Quebec.
This stealthy North Atlantic right whale calf, weighing in at 6,804 kilograms, had somehow managed to slip past the vigilant researchers who closely monitor the population of endangered species.
The calf’s existence only came to light when it was photographed in September near Anticosti Island.
“Honestly, I was a bit doubtful at first,” said Amy Warren, a scientist at the Anderson Cabot Center of the New England Aquarium, in an interview with As It Happens host Nil Kӧksal.
However, Warren and her team meticulously verified the sighting by identifying the mother and matching the calf’s unique markings with those of other documented whales.
This unexpected sighting has increased the count of baby right whales from the latest birthing season to 24, marking the most fruitful year for the species since 2009 and the fourth-highest total ever recorded, according to the aquarium.
“This year certainly brings a lot of hope and optimism,” Warren remarked.
Warren notes that scientists monitoring North Atlantic right whales often struggle to find reasons for optimism.
Currently, there are only 380 individuals remaining globally, as reported by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the population has declined by 25 percent from 2010 to 2020. Only about 70 of these are known to be of reproductive age.
This decline is partly due to rising ocean temperatures pushing these whales away from safe habitats and into areas where they face significant risks of ship collisions and entanglement in fishing gear.
“It’s incredibly hard to witness these whales endure traumatic experiences. We document their injuries and scars, and we spend considerable time discussing and observing them,” Warren stated.
“Thus, seeing these calves and the number of them is genuinely uplifting.”
Trend or anomaly?
Positive developments may be on the horizon. Since 2020, North Atlantic right whales have seen some population recovery, as indicated by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and the surge in calves this year has scientists feeling cautiously optimistic.
However, Warren cautions that it is premature to conclude whether this represents a genuine upward trend or merely an isolated occurrence.
“They might have discovered better feeding areas. That’s certainly a possibility,” she noted.
“We hope that the measures being taken by researchers and conservationists to safeguard them are proving effective. Yet, it’s difficult to assert that with absolute certainty.”
Videographers Heather MacAulay and Chris Murphy captured a remarkable image on Sept. 1 while observing a North Atlantic right whale off the shores of Blackhead Cove, N.L. These whales are critically endangered, yet there are encouraging signs that their population may be stabilizing.
This latest calf is the offspring of a female known as Silt, who researchers estimate to be at least 38 years old. This marks her sixth calf.
“She is a very experienced mother,” Warren mentioned. “Her last calf was born in 2022, so this timing is fitting for another birth this year.”
While technically right whales can have calves every three years, Warren notes that they generally wait between five to ten years.
However, she observes that this interval seems to be shortening.
“This year, we noticed the average wait time for females is closer to five years, whereas ten years ago, it was about ten years between calves.”
How did this calf stay hidden?
These elusive marine mammals typically give birth in the southeastern U.S. during winter and then migrate northwards to feed in New England and Canada. Scientists keep a vigilant watch over their populations, extensively photographing and cataloguing them based on their unique head markings.
Warren mentions that the calves are typically hard to overlook. They are still mastering the art of swimming and have limited breath-holding capabilities.
“Mothers and their calves tend to stay near the water’s surface, which makes them easier to spot,” Warren explained.
“Thus, the fact that this mother-calf duo managed to travel from their initial area all the way to Canada without being detected by any surveys along the route is quite remarkable and extremely rare.”
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The pair was spotted by researchers from the Mingan Island Cetacean Study, a non-profit organization dedicated to marine research in the Côte-Nord region of the province.
“This illustrates how vast the ocean is and how easily these animals can become lost,” stated Richard Sears, the founder and director of the Mingan Island Cetacean Study.
Warren, for her part, expresses hope that this discovery signifies a more promising future for North Atlantic right whales.
“That is indeed the hope,” she concluded. “However, we will only know in the years ahead.”