Saving Seafood

Georgians boycott Maine lobster industry after right whale dies

April 27, 2021 — Maine’s lobster industry is keeping a wary eye on a consumer boycott launched in Georgia.

Conservation groups there charge that New England’s lobster gear and trap-rope risk entangling and killing endangered right whales, and they said seafood lovers should choose other options.

The right whale has been Georgia’s official “state marine mammal” since 1985.

“The North Atlantic right whale is beloved, and those of us who love the Georgia coast just really celebrate the season when the whales come south to give birth,” said Alice Keyes, the coastal conservation director for an organization called 100 Miles, so-named for Georgia’s hundred-mile shoreline.

Read the full story at the Bangor Daily News

High Density of Right Whales in Massachusetts Waters

April 23, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Update from Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries

The Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) is closely monitoring the presence of North Atlantic Right Whales in Massachusetts coastal waters. From the period of April 6, 2021 through April 20, 2021 aerial and acoustic surveillance conducted by the NOAA Fisheries and the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies (PCCS) has detected moderate to high densities of right whales in Massachusetts coastal waters including; Cape Cod Bay, Massachusetts Bay, Stellwagen Bank, state waters on the backside of Cape Cod, and the nearshore federal waters south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.

Trap fishermen in Lobster Management Area 1 and Outer Cape Cod are reminded that the  state waters portion of these areas are closed to lobster trap fishing until May 15, 2021. NOAA Fisheries and PCCS are conducting routine aerial surveillance throughout Massachusetts’ coastal waters and adjacent federal waters multiple times per week. DMF will continue to monitor surveillance information and could open portions or all of state waters as early as May 1, 2021 if less than 3 right whales are detected in an area.

Mariners are reminded that there is a 10-knot small vessel (less than 65’ overall) speed limit in Cape Cod Bay to protect endangered right whales from the threat of ship strikes that remains in effect until April 30, 2021. During the late winter and early-spring, right whales migrate into and aggregate in Cape Cod Bay where they feed on zooplankton. As we move into the spring, these whales begin to feed closer to the surface and become more susceptible to ship strikes. Ship strikes are a significant source of mortality to these endangered whales. However, the lethality of ship strikes is greatly reduced when vessels are operating at less than 10-knots speed.

This small vessel speed limit— established in 2019—applies from March 1 – April 30 within those waters of Cape Cod Bay south of 42° 08’ north latitude, as well as those waters north of Cape Cod that are west of 70°10’ west longitude. A complementary federal speed limit applies to all vessels 65’ overall length and greater. DMF may extend or rescind this seasonal small vessel speed limit based on the continued presence or absence of whales. This small vessel speed limit does not apply to emergency and enforcement personnel, including federal whale disentanglement teams. Additionally, small vessel traffic operating within the inshore waters of Plymouth, Duxbury, Kingston, Barnstable and Wellfleet Harbors are exempt.

Read the full release here

Continuing Species in the Spotlight Initiative Empowers NOAA Fisheries’ Endangered Species Conservation Efforts

April 22, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries has released nine new Species in the Spotlight Priority Action Plans. These plans highlight the most vital actions that NOAA Fisheries and our partners can take to reverse the declining populations of nine endangered marine species that are most at risk of extinction. Building on the successes of the past five years, NOAA Fisheries is renewing the initiative through 2025 to sustain momentum toward recovery.

The Species in the Spotlight initiative, launched in 2015, focuses time, energy, and resources on the most imperiled marine species. It motivates partners and community members to join the effort to save these species from extinction. The nine species are all listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act:

These species are at high risk of extinction in the near future because of a rapid population decline or habitat destruction. They face human-caused threats such as construction, development, or other economic activity.

“The Species in the Spotlight initiative is a critical effort by NOAA Fisheries and our partners to leverage our resources and make the greatest impact to reverse the decline of these endangered species. I’m pleased to build upon our successful efforts to date with the renewal of these Species in the Spotlight Priority Action Plans,” says Sam Rauch, Deputy Assistant Administrator for NOAA Fisheries Regulatory Programs.

Read the full release here

NOAA Fisheries Releases New Species in the Spotlight Priority Action Plans

April 21, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Today, NOAA Fisheries released nine new Species in the Spotlight Priority Action Plans, two of which are for species in the Greater Atlantic Region. These plans highlight the most vital actions that NOAA Fisheries and our partners can take to reverse the declining populations of nine endangered marine species that are most at risk of extinction. Building on the successes of the past five years, NOAA Fisheries is renewing the initiative through 2025 to sustain momentum toward recovery.

GARFO’s two Species in the Spotlight are:

  • Atlantic Salmon Gulf of Maine Distinct Population Segment (DPS)
  • North Atlantic Right Whale (added in 2019)

NOAA’s seven other Species in the Spotlight are:

  • Central California Coast Coho Salmon Evolutionary Significant Unit (ESU)
  • Cook Inlet Beluga Whale DPS
  • Hawaiian Monk Seal
  • Pacific Leatherback Sea Turtle
  • Sacramento River Winter-run Chinook Salmon ESU
  • Southern Resident Killer Whale DPS
  • White Abalone

Established in 2015, the Species in the Spotlight initiative has since helped us achieve important milestones toward recovery. Watch the video.

We invite you to review the Species in the Spotlight Action Plans for 2021-2025 and learn more about our partners and what we have accomplished in the past 5 years. We appreciate all of our current partners and collaborators, as the steps we need to take to stabilize these species would not be possible without them.

Read our webstory to learn more.

Read the full release here

Extended Slow Zone East of Boston to Protect Right Whales

April 19, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries announces the extension of a Slow Zone set to expire east of Boston, MA. On April 17, 2021, residents of Nahant, MA observed (and photographed) the presence of right whales east of Boston, MA. This Slow Zone is in effect through May 2, 2021.

Mariners are requested to route around this or transit through it at 10 knots or less.

Slow Zone Coordinates:

East of Boston, MA, April 8 – May 2, 2021 *Extended*

42 39 N
41 54 N
070 08 W
071 06 W

See the coordinates for all the slow zones currently in effect.

Active Seasonal Management Areas 

Mandatory speed restrictions of 10 knots or less (50 CFR 224.105) are in effect in the following areas:

Cape Cod Bay, January 1 – May 15

Off Race Point, March 1 – April 30

Great South Channel, April 1 – July 31

November 1 – April 30

Block Island Sound

Ports of New York/New Jersey

Entrance to the Delaware Bay
(Ports of Philadelphia and Wilmington)

Entrance to the Chesapeake Bay
(Ports of Hampton Roads and Baltimore)

Ports of Morehead City and Beaufort, NC

Within a continuous area 20-nm from shore between Wilmington, North Carolina, to Brunswick, Georgia.

Find out more and get the coordinates for each mandatory slow speed zone.

Read the full release here

North Atlantic Right Whales On the Move in the Northeast

April 16, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

On March 21, 2021, 89 North Atlantic right whales were spotted by scientists from the Center for Coastal Studies in Cape Cod Bay. Just a few days later, on March 30, scientists spotted 57 North Atlantic right whales off Southeast New England in and around the wind energy development areas. They were seen by scientists from the Northeast Fisheries Science Center flying a sighting survey. Three mother/calf pairs have been sighted there to date.

Right whales have typically appeared in Cape Cod Bay during spring, but in recent years have been arriving sooner and staying longer. Right whale use of areas south and west of Nantucket Shoals has been documented in just the last 10 years. In recent years, the right whales appear to be staying in these waters in greater numbers and for longer periods than in the past.

What gives? To find out, we track when and where these whales are found throughout the year, using sighting surveys and passive acoustic listening devices.

“A very small portion of the right whale population heads south to the waters off northern Florida and Georgia in the winter—mostly just the moms—to give birth,“ said Tim Cole, a marine mammal researcher and lead of the center’s aerial whale survey team. We try to determine where the rest of the population is and have found them so far this year in large numbers on Nantucket Shoals south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, and in Cape Cod Bay.”

Read the full release here

Extended and New Slow Zones to Protect Right Whales

April 12, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries announces the extension of two Slow Zones set to expire south of Nantucket and establishes another Slow Zone southeast of Chatham, MA. On April 9, 2021 several aggregations of right whales were detected south of Nantucket, MA by the NOAA North Atlantic Right Whale Sighting Survey and southeast of Chatham, MA by the Center for Coastal Studies survey team. These three right whale Slow Zones are in effect immediately through April 24, 2021.

Mariners are requested to route around these areas or transit through them at 10 knots or less.

Slow Zone Coordinates:

Southeast of Chatham, MA, April 9 – April 24, 2021 *NEW*

41 56 N
41 15 N
069 23 W
070 16 W

South of Nantucket, MA, February 26 – April 24, 2021 *Extended*

41 23 N
40 40 N
069 39 W
070 35W

South of Nantucket, MA, March 30 – April 24, 2021 *Extended*

41 01 N
40 19  N
069 50 W
070 46 W

See the coordinates for all the slow zones currently in effect.

Read the full release here

New Slow Zone East of Boston to Protect Right Whales

April 9, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries announces a Slow Zone east of Boston. On April 8, 2021 an aggregation of right whales was detected east of Boston, MA by the NOAA North Atlantic Right Whale Sighting Survey. This right whale Slow Zone is in effect immediately through April 23, 2021.

Mariners are requested to route around this area or transit through it at 10 knots or less.

Slow Zone Coordinates:

East of Boston, MA, April 8 – April 23, 2021 

42 39 N
41 54 N
070 08 W
071 06 W

See the coordinates for all the slow zones currently in effect.

Read the full release here

New Slow Zone South of Martha’s Vineyard to Protect Right Whales

April 8, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries announces a Slow Zone south of Martha’s Vineyard. On April 7, 2021 an aggregation of right whales was detected south of Martha’s Vineyard, MA by the NOAA North Atlantic Right Whale Sighting Survey. This right whale Slow Zone is in effect immediately through April 22, 2021.

Mariners are requested to route around this area or transit through it at 10 knots or less.

Slow Zone Coordinates:

South of Martha’s Vineyard, MA, April 7 – April 22, 2021 

40 42 N
40 02 N
070 45 W
071 34 W

See the coordinates for all the slow zones currently in effect.

Active Seasonal Management Areas 

Mandatory speed restrictions of 10 knots or less (50 CFR 224.105) are in effect in the following areas:

Cape Cod Bay, January 1 – May 15

Off Race Point, March 1 – April 30

Great South Channel, April 1 – July 31

November 1 – April 30

Block Island Sound 

Ports of New York/New Jersey

Entrance to the Delaware Bay
(Ports of Philadelphia and Wilmington)

Entrance to the Chesapeake Bay 
(Ports of Hampton Roads and Baltimore)

Ports of Morehead City and Beaufort, NC

Within a continuous area 20-nm from shore between Wilmington, North Carolina, to Brunswick, Georgia.

Find out more and get the coordinates for each mandatory slow speed zone.

Give Right Whales Room

North Atlantic right whales are on the move along the Atlantic coast of the U.S. NOAA is cautioning boaters and fishermen to give these endangered whales plenty of room. We are also asking all fishermen to be vigilant when maneuvering to avoid accidental collisions with whales and remove unused gear from the ocean to help avoid entanglements. Commercial fishermen should use vertical lines with required markings, weak links, and breaking strengths.

Right Whales in Trouble

North Atlantic right whales are protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Scientists estimate there are only about 400 remaining, making them one of the rarest marine mammals in the world.

North Atlantic right whales are NOAA Fisheries’ newest Species in the Spotlight. This initiative is a concerted, agency-wide effort to spotlight and save marine species that are among the most at risk of extinction in the near future. 

In August 2017, NOAA Fisheries declared the increase in right whale mortalities an “Unusual Mortality Event,” which helps the agency direct additional scientific and financial resources to investigating, understanding, and reducing the mortalities in partnership with the Marine Mammal Stranding Network, Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and outside experts from the scientific research community.

Read the full release here

Births among endangered right whales highest since 2015

April 5, 2021 — North Atlantic right whales gave birth over the winter in greater numbers than scientists have seen since 2015, an encouraging sign for researchers who became alarmed three years ago when the critically endangered species produced no known offspring at all.

Survey teams spotted 17 newborn right whale calves swimming with their mothers offshore between Florida and North Carolina from December through March. One of those calves soon died after being hit a boat, a reminder of the high death rate for right whales that experts fear is outpacing births.

The overall calf count equals the combined total for the previous three years. That includes the dismal 2018 calving season, when scientists saw zero right whale births for the first time in three decades. Still, researchers say greater numbers are needed in the coming years for North Atlantic right whales to rebound from an estimated population that’s dwindled to about 360.

“What we are seeing is what we hope will be the beginning of an upward climb in calving that’s going to continue for the next few years,” said Clay George, a wildlife biologist who oversees right whale surveys for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. “They need to be producing about two dozen calves per year for the population to stabilize and continue to grow again.”

Read the full story at the Associated Press