All info from NOAA Fisheries
On Monday, October 12, the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine, New Jersey notified us that naturalists aboard the American Princess, a New York-based whale watch, spotted a North Atlantic right whale at around 2 p.m. on October 11. The sighting was approximately 2.7 nautical miles east of Sea Bright, New Jersey. While reviewing their photos after the end of the trip, naturalists from Gotham Whale observed entangling lines on the whale. They have shared their photos, and the New England Aquarium is working on identifying the whale. At this point, the Center for Coastal Studies believes this may be a new (previously unreported) case.
From the photos, biologists believe that the whale is in extremely poor condition, with large lesions on its body. The whale has two visible lines partially embedded around its head and likely has a more complex entanglement that needs additional documentation.
Working with the Center for Coastal Studies and Atlantic Marine Conservation Society, we are looking for a good weather window to document the whale’s location, full entanglement configuration, and injuries from the air, and hope to get a team in the air soon. After that, we will determine what actions we may be able to take for this whale.