Two calves were spotted by the Center for Coastal Studies’ aerial survey team in New England’s Cape Cod Bay, bringing the number seen there to three for 2019, the center said last week.
There are only about 411 of these whales left in the world, and last year, not a single calf was spotted, making researchers wonder if they may be on the edge of extinction.
Measuring the architectural loss of Notre Dame fire
Earlier this year, the Natural Resources Defense Council said seven calves had been spotted off the coasts of Florida and Georgia, where they are born. After calving, the whales make their way north to New England, usually in April.
“Every calf is precious,” Francine Kershaw of the NRDC wrote in a blog. “The seven born so far this year offer an emblem of hope that North Atlantic right whales can bounce back if given the chance.”
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