September 6, 2014 — Whale conservationists are taking their campaign to the boaters.
"North Atlantic Right Whales Need Your Help!" aluminum signs will be printed and ready for distribution next week, according to fishery biologist Christin Khan of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Northeast Fisheries Science Center. At first, 16 of the 2-by-3-foot signs will be available and organizers hope to place the first batch in launching areas around Cape Cod.
Local harbormasters will be asked to participate, Khan said. Signs also will be available to local marinas, although there could be a wait. The project is a cooperative effort among several right whale conservation groups in the region.
Khan and NOAA officials are hoping, though, that this is just a start.
"We'd like to have them all along the East Coast," Khan said.
The goal is to teach boaters more about the rare North Atlantic right whales.
There are about 500 North Atlantic right whales in the world, and they are considered at risk of extinction, according to the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium. The two primary threats are ship strikes and entanglement in fishing gear. The marine mammals typically calve in warmer waters off the coasts of Florida and Georgia and then swim north to feed, traditionally staying in waters around Cape Cod Bay from Jan. 1 through April 30.
While there is a lot of information about right whales available, say, on the Internet, there are few ways where someone would casually come across the information, Khan said Friday. Signs in places where boaters get to water could help, she said.
Read the full story at the Cape Cod Times