Nearly 20 whales have washed up on the Atlantic coast of the United States in the past three months. Some whales may have been hit by boats, while others may have been caught in changes in ocean currents related to climate change.
life
February 21, 2023
A dead male humpback whale washed ashore on Lido Beach, New York in January 2023 Reuters/Alamy Stock Photo
In the last three months, nearly 20 large whales have washed up on the US East Coast. The surge in strandings has already worried experts about vulnerable species and fueled speculation about potential causes behind the deaths.
Are these whale strandings an anomaly?
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 22 large whales have been stranded on the Atlantic coast of the United States since December 1, 2022. These include 15 humpback whales, sperm whalethe two North Atlantic right whaleone you are a whale and one minke whaleThe number of whale deaths in the first two months of 2023 has already matched last year’s total. “This is an amazing surge,” says Sheila Dean of the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in New Jersey.
This latest wave of whale deaths is part of a larger trend that began in 2016., However, it should be noted that this death toll so early in the calendar year is an anomaly.
Which whale species are at risk?
Of the five species washed out in recent months, three are considered vulnerable or endangered.humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) and the North Atlantic Right Whale (Ice Yubaraena) Humpback whales are usually the most commonly stranded species on the Atlantic coast of the United States, probably because they are the most abundant whale species in the region.
The situation is dire for the North Atlantic right whale, which has fewer than 350 extant individuals. The death of her two right whales within weeks of each other was a particularly devastating blow to the species. According to NOAA, more than 20% of the population has been affected by unusual mortality since 2016.
Kill a whale?
Most stranded whales are sick or injured, but there is no single cause for all stranded whales. In some cases, there are clear clues. Several beached whales in New Jersey had deep wounds, possibly caused by boat propellers. In other cases, marine biologists must perform a necropsy (a careful dissection similar to human dissection) to determine the cause of whale death. Some autopsies this year pointed to trauma from ship collisions, while others were too decomposed by the time they reached shore to be dissected.
Of the 178 humpback whale deaths NOAA investigated as part of an unusual death event, about half were autopsied. “Of the whales we surveyed, about 40 percent had evidence of human interaction, either ship collision or entanglement,” she said at her Jan. 18 press conference. Stated.
Unusual winds, tidal patterns and currents increase the chances of whales stranding on beaches, and such changes could be exacerbated by climate change.
While some have attributed the unusually high mortality rate to the noise generated during surveys of offshore wind turbine installations, NOAA believes such noise could affect the navigation and communication of whales. He said there is no evidence to support the claim that it interferes with ability. “There is no known link between this offshore wind activity and whale strandings, regardless of species.” Said NOAA’s Benjamin Laws at a press conference on Jan. 18. Protesters recently called on New Jersey government leaders to halt the expansion of offshore wind farms until more research is done on the potential link between underwater noise and whale deaths.
Do you have any other explanation?
Food sources for humpback whales are increasing. In New Jersey, the small silvery fish called Atlantic menhaden has increased in recent years as commercial fishing has declined. Humpback whales are placed in the path of major shipping routes. “Their food stayed here. So did they,” says Dean. Changing when, where and how fast ships travel could be part of the solution.
Another explanation for the surge in beached whales is that some species are recovering from extinction, increasing the overall number of strandings. With whaling bans and fishing regulations, humpback whales have surged from about 400 in his 1980s to over 80,000 today.
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