Editor-DN
North Atlantic right whales should live well over 100 years, but a recent study suggests that threats to the endangered species, including commercial crab and lobster fishing, have shortened their lifespan by a fraction. is given
The study, published in the journal Science Advances, focused on southern right whales, which are not endangered and can live up to 130 years. However, as southern and northern right whales are closely related, lead author Greg Brad said the study “confirmed the sorry state” of whales that travel to Canada to feed.
“I was, unfortunately, not at all surprised,” Brad, a biology professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, said in a recent interview. Because we know this species has been critically endangered for some time.”
On average, North Atlantic right whales live 22 years, a decline due to ship strikes, entanglement with fishing gear and climate change.
Historic whaling has exacerbated the plight of North Atlantic right whales, leaving almost no older whales in the population — and little wisdom to pass on to younger generations, he added. Like how to go to sea to find food with climate change.
“It’s a big deal. It’s a really big problem.”
North Atlantic right whales were subject to “Yankee whaling,” which ended around 1910, he said. Given the slow rate of reproduction of the animals, the few whales that were not hunted were mostly young. Females start giving birth at 10 to 12 years of age and reproduce once every three to five years.
“They rarely produce calves….and North Atlantic right whales are just being subjected to all these man-made threats, especially entanglement with fishing gear.”
The North Atlantic right whale is an endangered species with about 370 animals left in the wild. The main threats they face are entanglement in lobster and crab fishing gear and attacks by commercial vessels, both of which can be fatal.
The last time any North Atlantic right whales reached their natural age was likely around 1700 or 1800, when the whales were at full strength but had not yet decimated the population, Breed said.
“But it wasn’t long after that that the North Atlantic right whale population was almost completely decimated by whaling, and all the older individuals would have been gone by then,” he said. .
“Because to live to be 150 years old, in 1800 or 1850, you would have had to survive 70 years of intense whaling. And that would have been almost impossible.”
North Atlantic right whales are struggling to avoid extinction in a changing sea, but a calf has already been spotted at the start of calving season, a conservation group says is a reason for optimism.
Longevity allows animals to delay the age at which they begin to reproduce, or to have offspring when conditions are favorable, the study said.
The “life history characteristics” of North Atlantic right whales — such as the age at which they begin giving birth — are consistent with a much longer lifespan, the study said, with the current average of 22 years unrecognized. is minor and is responsible for high mortality.
The research says this unrecognized longevity has “profound” implications for understanding the underlying biology and conservation of whales.
Brad said economic pressures from lobster and crab fishing and climate change will make it difficult to undo the mistakes made with this whale species.
Scott Krause, a research scientist with the New England Aquarium, said the breeding study is another way to show that the North Atlantic right whale is in serious trouble.
“This means that conservation efforts over the past 30 years have not been successful and are not on track to save the right whale from extinction,” he said. “It’s basically a four-alarm fire.”
The way forward
Animals like the North Atlantic right whale fertilize the ocean, Krause said. Their waste nourishes the ocean, creating productivity that supports large fisheries, he added.
Conservation efforts are usually framed as a conflict between economic interests and wildlife welfare, he said. But the correct framing is to frame the situation as a battle between short-term and long-term gains.
To realize the long-term economic benefits from species like the North Atlantic right whale, fisheries and shipping must be regulated, and more climate mitigation measures must be taken, he said.
“We’re so concerned with annual reports from corporations and stockholder returns that we don’t focus on long-term results,” he said. “This is your way of doing math.”
