Right whale
301737
225033064
2008-07-11T15:45:07Z
NawlinWiki
301395
Protected Right whale: no reason to move this page w/o discussion [move=sysop]
{{otheruses}}
{{Taxobox
| name = Right whales
| image = Northatlrightwhale MMC.jpg
| image_caption = North Atlantic Right Whale [[Whale_surfacing_behaviour#Breaching.2C_lunging_and_porpoising|breaching]].
| image2 = Right_whale_size.svg
| image2_caption = Size comparison against an average human
| regnum = [[Animal]]ia
| phylum = [[Chordate|Chordata]]
| classis = [[Mammal]]ia
| ordo = [[Cetacea]]
| subordo = [[Mysticeti]]
| familia = [[Balaenidae]]
| genus = '''''Eubalaena'''''
| genus_authority = [[John Edward Gray|Gray]], 1864
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = ''[[Southern Right Whale|Eubalaena australis]]''<br />
''[[Atlantic Northern Right Whale|Eubalaena glacialis]]''<br />
''[[Pacific Northern Right Whale|Eubalaena japonica]]''
| range_map = Eubalaena range map.png
| range_map_caption = Range of the ''Eubalaena'' species.
}}
'''Right whales''' are [[baleen whale]]s belonging to the [[genus]] '''''Eubalaena'''''. Four right whale [[species]] are recognised in this genus.
Sometimes the [[family (biology)|family]] [[Balaenidae]] is considered to be the family of right whales. [[Bowhead Whale]], which has its own genus, ''[[Balaena]]'' also belongs to the Balaenidae family, and so is sometimes considered a right whale. However, this article focuses on the ''Eubalaena'' species.
Right whales can grow up to 18 [[metre|m]] (60 [[foot (unit of length)|feet]]) long and weigh up to 100 [[ton]]s. Their rotund bodies are mostly black, with distinctive [[callosity|callosities]] (roughened patches of skin) on their heads. They are called "right whales" because [[whaling|whalers]] thought the whales were the "right" ones to hunt, as they float when killed and often swim within sight of the shore. Populations were vastly reduced by intensive harvesting during the active years of the whaling industry. Today, instead of hunting them, people often [[whale watching|watch]] these acrobatic whales for pleasure.
The four Balaenidae species live in distinct locations. Approximate population figures:
*300 [[North Atlantic Right Whale]]s live in the [[North Atlantic]];
*200 [[North Pacific Right Whale]]s live in the [[North Pacific]];
*7,500 [[Southern Right Whale]]s are spread throughout the southern part of the [[Southern Hemisphere]];
*8,000–9,200 [[Bowhead Whale]]s are distributed entirely in the [[Arctic Ocean]].
==Taxonomy==
After many years of shifting views on the number of Balaenidae species, recent genetic evidence indicates that there are four distinct species. These species have traditionally been allocated to two genera.
The Bowhead Whale is currently considered an individual species and has been classified alone in its own genus since the work of [[John Edward Gray|Gray]] in 1821. The remaining three species are classified together in a separate genus. There is, however, little genetic evidence to support this two-genera view. Indeed, scientists see greater differences between the three ''[[Balaenoptera]]'' species than between the Bowhead Whale and the right whales. It therefore seems likely that all four species will be placed in one genus in a future review.<ref name=EOMM>{{cite book | last = Kenney | first = Robert D. | editor = William F. Perrin, Bernd Wursig and J. G. M. Thewissen | title = The Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals | year = 2002 | publisher = Academic Press | id = ISBN 0-12-551340-2 | pages = 806–813 | chapter = North Atlantic, North Pacific and Southern Right Whales}}</ref>
In dealing with the three populations of ''Eubalaena'' right whales, authorities have historically disagreed over whether to categorize the three populations in one, two or three species. In the days of whaling, there was thought to be a single worldwide species. Later, morphological factors such as small differences in the skull shape of northern and southern animals indicated that there were at least two species—one found only in the northern hemisphere, the other found in the [[Southern Ocean]].<ref>{{cite journal | quotes=no | author = J. Müller | year = 1954 | title = Observations of the orbital region of the skull of the Mystacoceti | journal = Zoologische Mededelingen|volume = 32|pages = 239–290 }}</ref> Furthermore, no group of right whales has been known to swim through warm equatorial waters to make contact with the other (sub)species and (inter)breed: their thick layers of insulating [[blubber]] make it impossible for them to dissipate their internal body heat in tropical waters.
In recent years, genetic studies have provided clear evidence that the northern and southern populations have not interbred for between 3 million and 12 million years, confirming the status of the Southern Right Whale as a distinct species. More surprising, then, has been the finding that the northern hemisphere Pacific and Atlantic populations are also distinct, and that the Pacific species (now known as the North Pacific Right Whale) is in fact more closely allied with the Southern Right Whale than with the North Atlantic Right Whale. While Rice continued to list two species in his 1998 classification,<ref>{{Cite journal: Rice cetacea classification}}</ref> this was disputed by Rosenbaum et al. in 2000.<ref>{{cite journal | quotes=no | author = Rosenbaum, H. C., R. L. Brownell Jr., M. W. Brown, C. Schaeff, V. Portway, B. N. White, S. Malik, L. A. Pastene, N. J. Patenaude, C. S. Baker, M. Goto, P. Best, P. J. Clapham, P. Hamilton, M. Moore, R. Payne, V. Rowntree, C. T. Tynan, J. L. Bannister and R. Desalle | year = 2000 | title = World-wide genetic differentiation of ''Eubalaena'': Questioning the number of right whale species | journal = Molecular Ecology | volume = 9 | url = http://www.nefsc.noaa.gov/psb/pubs/rosenbaummolecol.pdf | pages=1793 | doi=10.1046/j.1365-294x.2000.01066.x}}</ref> and Brownell et al (2001).<ref>{{cite journal | quotes=no | author = Brownell, R. L. Jr., P.J. Clapham, T. Miyashita and T. Kasuya | year = 2001 | title = Conservation status of North Pacific right whales | journal = Journal of Cetacean Research and Management (Special Issue) | volume = 2 | pages = 269–286}}</ref> In 2005, ''Mammal Species of the World'' listed three species, indicating a seemingly more permanent shift to this preference.<ref name=MSW3_Cetacea>{{MSW3 Cetacea}}</ref>
===Three ''Eubalaena'' species theory===
[[Whale louse|Whale lice]], [[Parasitism|parasitic]] [[cyamid]] [[crustacean]]s that live off skin debris, offer further information on ''Eubalaena'' right whale populations through their own genetic patterns. Because the lice reproduce much more quickly than whales, their genetic diversity is greater. Marine biologists at the University of Utah examined these lice genes and determined that their hosts split into three species 5–6 million years ago, and that these species were all equally abundant before whaling began in the 11th century.<ref>{{cite journal | quotes=no |journal=Molecular Ecology |year=2005 |volume=14 |pages=3439–3456 |title=Population histories of right whales (Cetacea: ''Eubalaena'') inferred from mitochondrial sequence diversities and divergences of their whale lice (Amphipoda: ''Cyamus'') |author = Kaliszewska, Z. A., J. Seger, S. G. Barco, R. Benegas, P. B. Best, M. W. Brown, R. L. Brownell Jr., A. Carribero, R. Harcourt, A. R. Knowlton, K. Marshalltilas, N. J. Patenaude, M. Rivarola, C. M. Schaeff, M. Sironi, W. A. Smith & T. K. Yamada | doi=10.1111/j.1365-294X.2005.02664.x}}</ref> The communities were first split off because of the joining of North and South America. The heat of the equator then separated them further into northern and southern groups. "This puts an end to the long debate about whether there are three [''Eubalaena''] species of right whale. They really are separate beyond a doubt," Jon Seger, the project's leader, told BBC News.<ref name=BBCWhaleLice>Ross, Alison. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4260498.stm "'Whale riders' reveal evolution."] ''BBC News'' (20 September 2005). </ref>
===''Balaena'' fossil record===
{{seealso|Evolution of cetaceans}}
A total of five ''Balaena'' fossils have been found in Europe and North America in deposits ranging from the late [[Miocene]] (about 10 [[mya (unit)|mya]]) to early [[Pleistocene]] (about 1.5 mya). These five records have each been accorded their own species status—''B. affinis'', ''B. etrusca'', ''B. montalionis'', ''B. primigenius'' and ''B. prisca''. The last of these may yet prove to be the same as the modern Bowhead Whale. Prior to these there is a long gap back to the next related cetacean in the fossil record—''Morenocetus'' was found in a South American deposit dating back 23 million years.
===Synonyms and common names===
Due to their familiarity to whalers over a number of centuries the right whales have been given many names. These names were applied to right whales throughout the world, reflecting the fact that only one species was recognised at this time. In his novel ''[[Moby-Dick]]'', [[Herman Melville]] writes: "Among the fishermen, the whale regularly hunted for oil is indiscriminately designated by all the following titles: The Whale; the '''Greenland Whale'''; the '''Black Whale'''; the '''Great Whale'''; the '''True Whale'''; the Right Whale."
'''''Halibalaena''''' (Gray, 1873) and '''''Hunterius''''' (Gray, 1866) are [[junior synonym]]s for the genus ''Eubalaena''. ''E. australis'' is the type species.
The species-level synonyms are:<ref name=MSW3_Cetacea/>
*For ''E. australis'': ''antarctica'' (Lesson, 1828), ''antipodarum'' (Gray, 1843), ''temminckii'' (Gray, 1864)
*For ''E. glacialis'': ''biscayensis'' (Eschricht, 1860), ''nordcaper'' (Lacepede, 1804)
*For ''E. japonica'': ''sieboldii'' (Gray, 1864)
{{clear}}
==Description==
{| style="float:right;"
|-
|[[Image:Eubalaena glacialis smiling.jpg|thumb|A North Atlantic Right Whale, clearly showing the distinctive [[callosity|callosities]] and curved mouth]]
|-
|[[Image:Southern right whale6.jpg|thumb|A Southern Right Whale in the breeding grounds at [[Peninsula Valdés]] in [[Patagonia]]]]
|-
|[[Image:Eubalaena japonica drawing.jpg|thumb|Drawing of a North Pacific Right Whale]]
|-
|[[Image:Faroe stamp 199 Eubalaena glacialis.jpg|thumb|right|A North Atlantic Right Whale on a [[Faroe Islands|Faroese]] [[postage stamp|stamp]]]]
|}
Right whales are easily distinguished from other whales by the [[callosity|callosities]] on their heads, a broad back without a [[dorsal fin]], and a long arching mouth that begins above the eye. The body of the whale is very dark grey or black, occasionally with some white patches on the belly. The right whale's callosities appear white, not due to skin pigmentation, but to large colonies of cyamids or [[whale louse|whale lice]].
Adults may be between 11–18 [[metre|m]] (36–59 [[foot (unit of length)|ft]]) in length and typically weigh 60–80 tonnes. The most typical lengths are 13–16 m (42–52 ft). The body is extremely robust with girth as much as 60% of total body length in some cases. The tail fluke is also broad (up to 40% of body length). The North Pacific species is on average the largest of the three ''Eubalaena'' right whales. The largest specimens of these may weigh 100 tonnes.
Right whales have between 200 and 300 [[baleen plate]]s on each side of the mouth. These are narrow and approximately 2 m long, and are covered in very thin hairs. The plates enable the whale to feed (see ''Diet'' below). The testicles of the right whale are likely to be the largest of any animal, each weighing around 500 [[kilogram|kg]] (1,100 [[pound (mass)|lbs]]). At 1% of the whale's total body weight, this size is very large even taking into account the size of the whale. This suggests that [[sperm competition]] is important in the mating process.<ref name=ADW>[http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Eubalaena_glacialis.html Crane, J. and R. Scott. 2002. "''Eubalaena glacialis''" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 30, 2006]</ref> Right whales have a distinctive wide V-shaped blow, caused by the widely-spaced [[Blowhole (biology)|blowhole]]s on the top of the head. The blow rises to 5 m (16 ft) above the ocean's surface.<ref name=ADW/>
Females reach sexual maturity at 6–12 years and breed every 3–5 years. Both reproduction and calving take place during the winter months. Calves are approximately 1 tonne (1.1 [[short ton]]s) in weight and 4–6 m in length at birth following a [[gestation period]] of 1 year. The right whale grows rapidly in its first year, typically doubling in length. Weaning occurs after eight months to one year and the growth rate in later years is not well understood—it may be highly dependent on whether a calf stays with its mother for a second year.<ref name=EOMM/>
Very little is known about the life span of right whales because they are so scarce scientists cannot really study them. One of the few pieces of evidence is the case of a mother North Atlantic right whale that was photographed with a baby in 1935, then photographed again in 1959, 1980, 1985 and 1992; callosity patterns were used to ensure that it was the same animal. Finally, she was photographed in 1995 with a seemingly fatal head wound that is presumed to have been caused by a ship strike. The animal was around 70 years of age at death. Research on [[Bowhead Whale]]s suggest reaching this age is not uncommon and may even be exceeded.<ref name=EOMM/><ref name=Katona>{{cite book | last = Katona| first = S. K. and S. D. Kraus | editor = J. R. Twiss and R. R. Reeves | title = Conservation and Management of Marine Mammals | year = 1999 | publisher = Smithsonian Press | pages = 311–331 | chapter = Efforts to conserve the North Atlantic right whale}}</ref>
[[Image:Eubalaena blow.jpg|thumb|left|The distinctive V-shaped blow of a right whale.]]
Right whales are slow swimmers, reaching only 5 [[knot]]s (9 km/h) at top speed, but are highly acrobatic and frequently [[whale behavior|breach]] (jump clear of the sea surface), [[tail-slap]] and [[lobtail]]. Like other baleen whales, the species is not gregarious and the typical [[Group size measures|group size]] is only two. Larger groups of up to twelve have been reported, but these were not close-knit and may have been transitory.
The right whale's only predators are the [[orca]] and [[whaling|humans]]. When danger lurks, a group of right whales may come together in a circle, with their tails pointing outwards, to deter a predator. This defence is not always successful and calves are occasionally separated from their mother and killed.
==Diet==
The right whale's diet consists primarily of [[zooplankton]] and tiny [[crustacean]]s such as [[copepod]]s, as well as [[krill]], and [[pteropod]]s, although they are occasionally opportunistic feeders. They feed by "skimming" along with their mouth open. Water and prey enters the mouth but only the water can pass through the baleen and out again into the open sea. Thus, for a right whale to feed, the prey must occur in sufficient numbers to trigger the whale's interest; be large enough that the baleen plates can filter it; and be small enough that it does not have the speed to escape.<ref name=EOMM/> The "skimming" may take place on the surface, underwater, or even close to the ocean's bottom, indicated by mud occasionally observed on right whales' bodies.<ref name=EOMM/>
==Sound production and hearing==
:''See also: [[Whale song]]''
Vocalizations made by right whales are not elaborate compared to those made by other whale species. The whales make groans, pops and belches that are typically around 500 [[Hertz|Hz]]. The purpose of the sounds is not known but is likely to be a form of communication between whales within the same group.
A report published in the [[Proceedings of the Royal Society]] B in December 2003 found that Northern Right Whales responded rapidly on hearing sounds similar to [[Siren (noisemaker)|police sirens]]—sounds of much higher [[frequency]] than those made by whales. On hearing the sounds they moved rapidly to the surface. The research was of particular interest because it is known that Northern Rights ignore most sounds, including those of approaching boats. Researchers speculate that this information may be useful in attempts to reduce the number of ship-whale collisions or to encourage the whales to surface for ease of [[whaling|harvesting]].<ref>[http://www.journals.royalsoc.ac.uk/openurl.asp?genre=article&doi=10.1098/rspb.2004.2895 Gaines, C., Hare, M., Beck, S., & Rosenbaum, H. (2005)]. Nuclear markers confirm taxonomic status and relationships among highly endangered and closely related right whale species. ''Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B, 272'', 533–542.</ref><ref name=BBC_Sirens>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3256406.stm Northern Right Whales respond to emergency sirens]</ref>
==Whaling==
[[Image:La Baleine.jpg|thumb|right|[[Whaling]] in small wooden boats with hand [[harpoon]]s was a hazardous enterprise, even when hunting the "right" whale.]]
{{main|History of whaling}}
{{See also|Whaling}}
Right whales were so named because [[whaling|whalers]] thought they were the "right" whale to hunt. 40% of a right whale's body weight is [[blubber]], which is of relatively low density. Consequently, unlike many other species of whale, deceased right whales float. Combined with the right whale's slowness through water they were easy to catch even for whalers equipped only with wooden boats and hand-held [[harpoon]]s.
The [[Basque people|Basque]]s were the first to commercially hunt right whales. They began doing so as early as the 11th century in the [[Bay of Biscay]]. The whales were hunted initially for their oil but, as [[meat preservation]] technology improved, the animal was also used for food. They reached eastern [[Canada]] by 1530<ref name=EOMM/> and the shores of [[Todos os Santos Bay]] (in [[Bahia]], [[Brazil]]) by 1602. The last Basque whaling voyages were made prior to the commencement of the Seven Year's War (1756-1763). A few attempts were made to revive the trade, but they all failed. Basque shore whaling continued sporadically into the 19th century.
Basques were replaced by the whalers from the new American colonies: the "Yankee whalers". Setting out from [[Nantucket, Massachusetts]] and [[Long Island, New York]], the Americans were able to take up to 100 right whales in good years. By 1750 the North Atlantic Right Whale was as good as extinct for commercial purposes and the Yankee whalers moved into the South Atlantic before the end of the 18th century. The southernmost Brazilian whaling station was established in 1796, in [[Imbituba]]. Over the next one hundred years, Yankee whaling spread into the Southern and Pacific Oceans, where the Americans were joined by fleets from several European nations. The beginning of the 20th century saw much greater industrialization of whaling, and the takes grew rapidly. By 1937, there had been, according to whalers' records, 38,000 takes in the South Atlantic, 39,000 in the South Pacific, 1,300 in the [[Indian Ocean]], and 15,000 in the north Pacific. Given the incompleteness of these records, the actual take was somewhat higher.<ref>{{cite book | last = Tonnessen | first = J. N. and A. O. Johnsen | year = 1982 | title = The History of Modern Whaling | publisher = C. Hurst & Co. | location = United Kingdom | id = ISBN 0-905838-23-8 }}</ref>
As it became clear that stocks were nearly depleted, a worldwide total ban on right whaling was agreed upon in 1937. The ban was largely successful, although some whaling continued in violation of the ban for several decades. [[Madeira]] took its last two right whales in 1968. Japan took 23 Pacific right whales in the 1940s and more under scientific permit in the 1960s. Illegal whaling continued off the coast of Brazil for many years and the Imbituba land station processed right whales until 1973. The [[Soviet Union]] is now known to have illegally taken at least 3,212 Southern Right Whales during the 1950s and '60s, although it only reported taking 4.<ref>{{Cite book | last = Reeves | first = Randall R., Brent S. Stewart, Phillip J. Clapham and James. A Powell | year = 2002 | title = National Audubon Society: Guide to Marine Mammals of the World | publisher = Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. | location = United States | id = ISBN 0-375-41141-0 }}</ref>
==Population and distribution today==
{| style="float:right;background: #ccf;width: 25%;margin: 3px; padding: 3px;"
|-
|'''Estimating whale abundance'''
|-
|Because the oceans are so large, it is very difficult to accurately gauge the size of a whale population. The estimate of 7,000 Southern Right Whales came about following an [[International Whaling Commission|IWC]] workshop held in [[Cape Town]] in March 1998.
Researchers used data about adult female populations from three surveys (one in each of Argentina, South Africa and Australia collected during the 1990s) and extrapolated to include unsurveyed areas, number of males and calves using available male:female and adult:calf ratios to give an estimated 1999 figure of 7,000 animals. Further information may be obtained from the May 1998 edition of "Right Whale News" [http://www.graysreef.nos.noaa.gov/rtwh/rwmay98.html available online].
|}
Today, the three ''Eubalaena'' species inhabit three distinct areas of the globe: the North Atlantic in the western [[Atlantic Ocean]], the North Pacific in a band from [[Japan]] to [[Alaska]] and the Southern in all areas of the [[Southern Ocean]]. The whales can only cope with the moderate temperatures found between 20 and 60 degrees in latitude. Thus the warm waters of the equatorial region form a barrier and prevent the northern and southern groups' inter-mixing. Although the Southern species in particular must travel across open ocean to reach its feeding grounds, the species is not considered to be [[pelagic]]. In general, they prefer to stay close to [[peninsula]]s and bays and on [[continental shelf|continental shelves]], as these areas offer greater shelter and an abundance of their preferred foods.
[[Image:Eubalaena glacialis with calf.jpg|thumb|left|A female North Atlantic Right Whale with her calf.]]
There are about 400 North Atlantic Right Whales, almost all living in the Western North Atlantic Ocean. In spring, summer and autumn, they feed in areas off the Canadian and north-east US coasts in a range stretching from [[New York]] to [[Nova Scotia]]. Particularly popular feeding areas are the [[Bay of Fundy]] and [[Cape Cod Bay]]. In winter, they head south towards [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] and [[Florida]] to give birth.
There have been a smattering of sightings further east over the past few decades—several sightings were made close to [[Iceland]] in 2003. It is possible that these are the remains of a virtually extinct eastern Atlantic stock, but examination of old whalers records suggest that they are more likely to be strays from further west.<ref name=EOMM/> However, a few sightings are regular between Norway, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, the Canary Islands and even Sicily<ref>{{cite web | author = Martin et al. | title = SIGHTING OF A RIGHT WHALE (EUBALAENA GLACIALIS) WITH CALF OFF S. W. PORTUGAL | publisher = NOAA | year = 1997 | work=Marine Mammal Science vol. 13. no. 1 p 139 | url=http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1748-7692.1997.tb00617.x?journalCode=mms | accessmonthday=October 26 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and at least the Norway individuals come from the Western stock.<ref>{{cite web | author = Jacobsen et al. | title = TWO-WAY TRANS-ATLANTIC MIGRATION OF A NORTH ATLANTIC RIGHT WHALE (EUBALAENA GLACIALIS) | year = 2004 | work=Marine Mammal Science vol. 20. no. 1 p 161 | url=http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1748-7692.2004.tb01147.x | accessmonthday=October 26 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
Only about 200 North Pacific right whales survive.<ref name=BBCWhaleLice/> Thus, the two northern right whale species are the most [[endangered species|endangered]] of all large [[whale]]s and two of the most endangered animals in the world. Based on current population density trends, both species are predicted to become extinct within 200 years.<ref name=BBC_Sirens/> The Pacific species was historically found from the southern tip of Japan, across the [[Bering Strait]] and down the North American coast as far as [[California]]. Today, sightings are very rare and generally occur in the mouth of the [[Sea of Okhotsk]] and in the eastern [[Bering Sea]]. Although this species is very likely to be migratory like the other two species, its movement patterns over the year are not known.
Southern Right Whales spend the summer months in the far Southern Ocean feeding, probably close to [[Antarctica]]. They migrate north in winter for breeding and can be seen around the coasts of [[Argentina]], [[Australia]], [[Brazil]], [[Chile]], [[Mozambique]], [[New Zealand]] and [[South Africa]]. The total population is estimated to be between seven and eight thousand. Since hunting of the Southern Right Whale ceased, stocks are estimated to have grown by 7% a year. It appears that the South American, South African and Australasian groups intermix very little, if at all, because the fidelity of a mother to its feeding and calving habitats is very strong. The mother also passes these instincts to her calves.<ref name=EOMM/>
In Brazil, more than 300 individuals have been cataloged through photo identification (using their distinctive head callosities) by the [[Brazilian Right Whale Project]], maintained jointly by [[Petrobras]] (the Brazilian state-owned oil company) and the [[International Wildlife Coalition]]. The State of [[Santa Catarina (state)|Santa Catarina]] hosts a concentration of breeding and calving right whales from June to November, and females from this population are also known to calve off Argentinian [[Patagonia]].
==Conservation==
[[Image:Eubalaena glacialis dead.jpg|thumb|right|The remains of a North Atlantic Right Whale after it collided with a boat [[propeller]].]]
The leading cause of death among North Atlantic right whales, which migrate through some of the world's busiest shipping lanes whilst journeying off the east coast of the United States and Canada, is injury sustained from being struck by ships.<ref>{{cite web | author = Vanderlaan & Taggart | title = Vessel collisions with whales: the probability of lethal injury based on vessel speed | publisher = Mar. Mam. Sci | year = 2007 | url = http://www.phys.ocean.dal.ca/~taggart/Publications/Vanderlaan_Taggart_MarMamSci-23_2007.pdf | accessdate = 2008-05-10}}</ref> At least 16 reported deaths due to ship strikes were reported between 1970 and 1999, and probably many more remain unreported.<ref name=EOMM/> Recognising that this toll could tip the balance of the already delicately poised species towards extinction, the United States government introduced measures to curb the decline. The [[NOAA|National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's]] ''Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan''<ref>{{cite web | author = ''Author not specified''|title = Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan|publisher = [[NOAA]] | year = 1997 | url=http://www.nero.noaa.gov/whaletrp/ | work = NOAA | accessmonthday = May 2 | accessyear = 2006 }}</ref> was introduced in 1997. A key part of the plan was the introduction of mandatory reporting of large whale sightings by ships using U.S. ports. This requirement was implemented in July 1999.
Whilst environmental campaigners were, as reported in 2001, pleased that the reporting plan has a positive effect, they wanted the government to do more.<ref>{{cite web | author=''Author not specified'' | title=Right whales need extra protection | publisher=BBC News | year=November 28, 2001 | work=BBC News | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/1681532.stm | accessmonthday=May 2 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> In particular they demanded that ships within 40 km (25 miles) of U.S. ports in times of known high right whale conservation be forced to maintain a speed of no more than 12 knots (22 km/h). The United States government, citing concerns about excessive disruption to trade, did not enforce such measures. The conservation groups [[Defenders of Wildlife]], the [[Humane Society of the United States]] and the [[Ocean Conservancy]] thus sued the [[National Marine Fisheries Service]] (a sub-agency of the NOAA) in September 2005 for "failing to protect the critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whale, which the agency acknowledges is 'the rarest of all large whale species' and which federal agencies are required to protect by both the [[Marine Mammal Protection Act]] and the [[Endangered Species Act]]," and demanded that emergency measures be put in place to protect the whales.<ref>{{cite web | author = The Southeast United States Right Whale Recovery Plan Implementation Team and the Northeast Implementation Team | title = NMFS and Coast Guard Inactions Bring Litigation | publisher = NOAA | year = November 2005 | work=Right Whale News vol. 12. no. 4 | url=http://www.graysreef.nos.noaa.gov/rtwh/rwnov05.pdf|accessmonthday=May 2 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> Both the North Atlantic and North Pacific species are listed as a "species threatened with extinction which [is] or may be affected by trade" (Appendix I) by [[CITES]], and as [[Conservation Dependent]] by the [[IUCN Red List]], and as endangered under the U.S. [[Endangered Species Act]].
A second major cause of morbidity and mortality in North Atlantic right whales is entanglement in fishing gear. Right whales filter feed plankton with their mouths wide open, exposing themselves to the risk of entanglement in any rope or net fixed in the water column. They commonly wrap rope around their upper jaws, flippers and tails. Most manage to escape with minor scarring, but some get seriously and persistently entangled. Such cases if sighted are sometimes successfully disentangled, but others are not and they die a most gruesome death over a period of months. There has been a major focus on the conservation status of the right whale in terms of an endangered species. However, equally significant is the extreme animal welfare concern such chronic fatal entanglements represent.
The Southern Right Whale, listed as "endangered" by CITES and "lower risk - conservation dependent" by the IUCN, is protected in the jurisdictional waters of all countries with known breeding populations (Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, New Zealand, South Africa and Uruguay). In Brazil, a federal Environmental Protection Area encompassing some 1,560 km² (602 miles²)and 130 km (80 miles)of coastline in Santa Catarina State was established in 2000 to protect the species' main breeding grounds in Brazil and promote regulated whale watching.<ref>Petrobras, Projeto Baleia Franca. [http://www.baleiafranca.org.br/ More information on Brazilian right whales is available in Portuguese.]</ref>
On [[June 26]], [[2006]], NOAA proposed the ''Strategy to Reduce Ship Strikes to North Atlantic Right Whales''.<ref>NOAA. [http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/shipstrike/ Proposed Strategy to Reduce Ship Strikes to North Atlantic Right Whales.]</ref> The proposal, which is opposed by some shipping interests, envisages imposing a speed cap of 10 knots (11.5 miles per hour; 18.5 km per hour) on specific routes during calving season for vessels 20 m (65 ft) or longer. The proposal is open for comments until [[August 25]], [[2006]]. According to the NOAA, 25 of the 71 right whale deaths reported since 1970 resulted from ship strikes.
The [[Stellwagen Bank]] area has implemented an autobuoy (AB) program to acoustically detect right whales in the Boston Approaches and notify mariners of right whale detections via the [http://listenforwhales.com/ Right Whale Listening Network] website.
==Whale watching==
[[Image:Southern right whale7.jpg|thumb|left|A Southern Right Whale approaches close to [[whale watching|whale watchers]] near [[Península Valdés]] in [[Patagonia]].]]
:''See also: [[Whale watching]]''
Southern Right Whales have made [[Hermanus]], [[South Africa]] one of the world centers for [[whale watching]]. During the winter months (July–October), Southern Right Whales come so close to the shoreline that visitors can watch whales from strategically-placed hotels. The town employs a "whale crier" ([[cf.]] [[town crier]]) to walk through the town announcing where whales have been seen. Southern Right Whales can also be watched at other winter breeding grounds.
In Brazil, Imbituba in [[Santa Catarina (state)|Santa Catarina]] has been recognized as the National Right Whale Capital and holds annual Right Whale Week celebrations in September, when mothers and calves are more often seen. The old whaling station there has been converted to a museum documenting the history of right whales in Brazil. In Argentina, [[Península Valdés]] in [[Patagonia]] hosts (in winter) the largest breeding population of the species, with more than 2,000 animals catalogued by the [[Whale Conservation Institute]] and [[Ocean Alliance]].<ref>[http://www.oceanalliance.org Ocean Alliance website]</ref>
==Notes==
{{commonscat|Balaenidae}}
{{cetaceaportal}}
{{Reflist}}
==References==
* ''Collins Gem : Whales and Dolphins'', ISBN 0-00-472273-6.
* Carwardine, Mark. ''Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises'', ISBN 0-7513-2781-6.
* Congressional Research Service (CRS).[http://digital.library.unt.edu/govdocs/crs/search.tkl?q=%22right+whale%22&search_crit=fulltext&search=Search&date1=Anytime&date2=Anytime&type=form Northern Right Whale]
==External links==
*[http://www.whoi.edu/page.do?pid=12639 Right whale information from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution], [[Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution]]
* [http://www.sfcelticmusic.com/js/RTWHALES/nprightw.htm Description and sightings of Right Whales]
* [http://www.iucnredlist.org/search/details.php/41712/all IUCN Red List entry]
* [http://www.earthocean.tv/series/srws_argentina.html earthOCEAN documentary film about Southern Right Whales of Argentina]
*[http://www.wdcs.org Whale & Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS)]
{{featured article}}
{{Cetacea|M.}}
[[Category:Baleen whales]]
[[Category:Endangered species]]
[[Category:Mammals of Europe]]
[[Category:Mammals of Japan]]
[[zh-min-nan:Chiàⁿ hái-ang]]
[[es:Eubalaena]]
[[fr:Eubalaena]]
[[id:Paus sikat]]
[[nl:Noordkapers]]
[[pl:Eubalaena]]
[[pt:Eubalaena]]
[[zh:露脊鯨]]