Right Whale

This is a picture of a right whale and her calf.

Whales are such magnificent creatures. While watching the news yesterday, a package on whale watching came on. Big dangerous looking creatures, swimming alongside a boat. My mom made a comment that if they wanted to they could easily flip the boat over. But no, they are harmless.

They swim by big man made machineries and mind their own businesses. If I was a whale and saw the ugly ship that does not belong in my home, I’d flip it over. Thank goodness for those ships I’m not a whale. But honestly, I can’t say the same for killer whales.

As kind as most whales are, ships are their predators. One of the most endangered species of whales is the right whale. The name right whale comes from whalers who thought it was the "right" whale to kill. Back in the day it was for the whale's oil, One of the leading two unnatural causes of right whale deaths is getting hit by a ship.

An article from the New York Times says that the National Marine Fisheries Service wants to make speed limits on ships within 30 miles of port. The White House has been lagging on making a decision because shipping companies don’t like it.

In the last 10 years, a third of the right whale population was killed due to ship strikes. With only 350 North Atlantic whales left in the world, scientists warn that an unnatural death of even one breeding female can push North Atlantic right whales into extinction.