Extremely Rare Whales Make A Big Splash In Cape Cod

[WhiteTara]

http://news.yahoo.com/extremely-rare-whales-make-a-big-splash-in-cape-105920654.html

An extremely rare species of whale are turning up in record numbers to make a splash in Cape Cod.

There are thought to be only 500 remaining right whales on Earth, but almost half of them have been spotted off the US coast in the past few springs.

This year, right whales have returned to Cape Cod, Massachusetts in large numbers - and the sight is turning into an amateur photographer’s dream.

The animals are attracted to this area of the Atlantic Ocean because it is rich in plankton for feeding.

[Omaha Steve]

1. Thanks for posting

K&R!

From the OP link:

OS

[WhiteTara]

2. Aren't they magnificent?

[flamingdem]

3. Right whale map

PORTLAND, Maine - Federal fishing regulators say researchers have identified 61 critically-endangered right whales in Cape Cod Bay, including four mothers with calves.

NOAA Fisheries officials say the whales were spotted in the past two weeks through aerial surveys. The agency is asking boaters and fishermen to keep an eye out for the whales and go slow in the area. There's already been one report of a possible whale/boat collision near the western shore of the bay.

The group of right whales currently in Cape Cod Bay represents a significant percentage of the whale's entire world population, which numbers only about 500. NOAA regulations require boats at least 65 feet in length to travel at 10 knots or less in Cape Cod Bay and off Race Point to avoid collisions with the North Atlantic right whale, and NOAA is asking all vessels, recreational and commercial, to voluntarily comply with the restrictions.