A North Atlantic right whale named Division was discovered deceased in U.S. waters this week, trapped in fishing gear. This marks the initial entanglement fatality of 2026, as reported by the Canadian Whale Institute.
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) disclosed in a press release on Friday that a right whale carcass was sighted by an aerial survey team around 40 kilometers off the coast of Avon, N.C., on Jan. 27. New England Aquarium scientists positively identified the deceased whale as Division, a four-year-old male.
An official statement indicated that the whale had a fishing line entangled around its head and mouth, causing severe injuries to its blowhole and upper jaw. North Atlantic right whales are classified as critically endangered with a population of less than 400 individuals. NOAA highlights that entanglements and vessel collisions in U.S. and Canadian waters are the primary causes of mortality for these whales.
Tonya Wimmer, the executive director of the Marine Animal Response Society, emphasized the significance of each critically endangered animal’s life in the conservation effort. She stressed the importance of preventing further incidents to aid in the recovery of these species.
Division was initially observed entangled over a month earlier on Dec. 3, with scientists noting the adverse impact on its health due to prolonged entanglement. Despite efforts to remove some fishing gear in December, inclement weather conditions and the whale’s distance from the shore hindered a complete disentanglement. Division was last seen alive on Jan. 21.
The death of Division marks the first documented North Atlantic right whale fatality since May 2024, according to the New England Aquarium. Wimmer expressed the distressing visual transformation caused by the entanglement on Division, emphasizing the urgency to prevent such tragedies.
Due to hazardous weather conditions and the whale’s location, retrieving the carcass for a necropsy is unfeasible, as stated by NOAA. However, federal authorities will analyze the fishing gear recovered from the whale. The New England Aquarium records show that Division had encountered three previous entanglements over the years.
North Atlantic right whales typically migrate to Atlantic Canadian waters for feeding purposes. Division was frequently observed in the Gulf of St. Lawrence in New Brunswick, where the species gradually moved as ocean temperatures rose.
Despite the loss of Division, Wimmer remains optimistic about the species’ future, citing the birth of over 21 calves since the start of the calving season in November, surpassing the previous year’s count. This positive trend instills hope that the species can recover if human-induced threats are mitigated.