Another Dead Humpback Whale Was Found Floating Off the Jersey Shore

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Guest Blog by Joe Reynolds, Save Coastal Wildlife

A beached humpback whale, found on the bay side of the inlet just across the Townsends Inlet Bridge. Photo by Seven Mile Times.

On Thursday, November 5, 2020, a 20-25 foot juvenile humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) was found dead floating near a sandbar in Townsends Inlet in Cape May County, New Jersey. The large mammal had apparently been dead for several days. It was first spotted around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday. 

This tragic event follows even more heartbreaking news about Right Whales, the most endangered large whale species in the world! 

The North Atlantic Right Whale.

We are very sad by the announcement by researchers at the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium that the estimated number of North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) remaining in the world is just 356, not 400 as previously thought. It is truly upsetting news. The population continues to be in decline, and the decline is accelerating. 

The North Atlantic right whale – one of the world’s most endangered large whale species – has been in decline since 2011. The numbers reported represent a larger than anticipated loss. Of the remaining whales, only about 70 breeding females survive. Without decisive action, experts fear females could disappear in the next 10 to 20 years.

The low population numbers mean it is essential we protect every right whale to avoid extinction. Deaths from vessel strikes and entanglement in fishing gear in both U.S. and Canadian waters (including along the Jersey Shore and within the New York-New Jersey Bight) remain the two known factors in the ongoing decline. 

What Can You Do To Help?

Click here to continue reading.

Further Reading:

New York Times, What It Took to Free a Whale Entangled in 4,000 Pounds of Fishing Gear

Learn more about the North Atlantic Right Whale in the CWF Field Guide.

Learn more about Save Coastal Wildlife on their website SaveCoastalWildlife.org

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  1. It’s colder now and it would seem worth someone’s trying to get tissue and look at other organs to see if the cause of this death can be determined scientifically.

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