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A female whale named Calvin has been spotted by researchers off the coast of Massachusetts after disappearing for three years
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Scientist feared the worst after the animal was last seen with what is known as an “entanglement” injury, which happens when a whale becomes entangled in discarded fishing gear or sea debris
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Calvin is a North Atlantic right whale, which is one of the most endangered types of whales in the world
A whale thought to have died three years ago has suddenly reappeared off the coast of Massachusetts.
Calvin, a North Atlantic right whale, was spotted in a pod of over 60 whales on April 23 during an aerial survey about 55 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard, according to a May 1 news release from the New England Aquarium.
“This was the first time Calvin had been seen in almost three years, and at her last sighting, she had severe entanglement wounds that were new. A lot of people had given up hope that she was still alive after not being seen for so long,” associate research scientist Katherine McKenna said in the release.
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An entanglement wound occurs when a whale or other sea creature becomes entangled in discarded fishing gear or sea debris, per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
New England Aquarium, underNMFSpermit #25739
Pod of whales in which Calvin was most recently spotted about 55 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts
The New England Aquarium release goes on to say that Calvin was orphaned at eight months old in 1992, when her mother was killed after being struck by a large vessel. Calvin herself has given birth four times and survived eight entanglements.
“Calvin’s story illustrates the resiliency of right whales,” McKenna added in the aquarium’s press release. “However, their resiliency alone is not enough for this species to recover. We must reduce the sources of human-caused mortality and injury that are preventing the right whale population from thriving.”
Right whales — which originally got their name because they were considered the “right whales” to hunt by whalers due to the fact that they float once killed instead of sinking to the sea floor — are considered critically endangered.
There are currently about 370 right whales left on the planet, and only about 70 of those are females of reproductive age, according to a species info page on NOAA’s website.
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Right whales are thought to live about 70 years, though the current average lifespan is about 65 for males and 45 for females due to human threats and activities.
Researchers hypothesize that the female right whale population is declining faster than the male population due to the fact that females are more vulnerable to strikes from ships as well as entanglement injuries while they are recovering from birthing their calves, per NOAA.
Currently, the species can solely be spotted along the Northeast coast of the U.S. and Canada.
Interested in donating to help preserve the right whale population? You can donate to the World Wildlife Fund here.
Read the original article on People
