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2023.01.05- Right Whale Swimming with Calf-FWC-CC BY NC ND 2.0
Washington, DC

Defenders: Latest Right Whale Population Estimate Shows More to be Done

The North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium via NOAA Fisheries today updated the estimated population of critically endangered North Atlantic right whales. The new estimate is
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2020.01.18 - North Atlantic Right Whale Surfacing - FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute
Washington, DC

Right Whale Vessel Strike Protections Sought by Nov. 1

Conservation groups this week asked a federal judge to set a Nov. 1 deadline for long-delayed federal action to finalize expanded vessel strike protections for
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NARW
Washington, DC

Defenders: Bill Would Push Critically Endangered Right Whales to Brink of Extinction

On Thursday, the Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Subcommittee of the House Committee on Natural Resources is considering H.R. 8704, a bill that would push the

More North Atlantic Right Whale Press Releases

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North atlantic right whale
Washington, D.C.

Emergency Petition Seeks to Shield Right Whale Moms, Calves From Ship Strikes

Defenders of Wildlife and partner conservation groups filed an emergency rulemaking petition with NOAA Fisheries today to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales from being struck and killed by vessels in their calving grounds off the coast of the southeast United States.
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Right Whale #2360 “Derecha” with Injured Calf January 8, 2020
Washington, D.C.

New Population Estimate Illustrates the North Atlantic Right Whales’ Downward Trend

Today, the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium announced that the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale’s population – now at 340, down from 348 – continues its decade-long decline. The species’ population has plummeted by 30% in the last decade, down from 481 in 2011. The latest estimate represents the whale’s lowest population estimate in 20 years.
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Right Whale Catalog #3101- Harmonia with her Newborn Calf approx. 7 nautical miles off Cumberland Island, GA
Washington, D.C.

Court Upholds Federal Action to Protect Right Whales From Deadly Entanglements in Lobster Gear

A federal court has rejected a lobster industry attack on the science supporting recent federal efforts to protect critically endangered right whales from deadly entanglements in lobster gear. The industry sued NOAA Fisheries, and Defenders of Wildlife, the Center for Biological Diversity, and Conservation Law Foundation intervened to defend the science.
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North atlantic right whale
Washington, D.C.

Federal Proposal Aims to Protect Endangered Right Whales From Ship Strikes

NOAA Fisheries proposed a rule today to better protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales from being run over and killed by vessels in U.S. waters. Vessel strikes are one of the two primary threats to right whales; the other is entanglement in fishing gear.
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Right Whale #2360 “Derecha” with Injured Calf January 8, 2020
Boston, Mass.

Federal Appeals Court Reinstates Right Whales Seasonal Protection

In a victory for critically endangered North Atlantic right whales, the U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals today reinstated a seasonal prohibition on lobster fishing with vertical lines in federal waters off the coast of Maine.
Senior Vice President, External Affairs
lsheehan@defenders.org
202-772-3244
Communications Director
mdewane@defenders.org
(202) 772-0217
Communications Specialist
jcovey@defenders.org
Communications Specialist
hhammer@defenders.org
(202) 772-0295
Communications Specialist
jpetrequin@defenders.org
(202) 772-0243