tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8780776648338650722024-03-05T12:21:17.419-05:00Right Whale Research BlogThe New England Aquarium is part of a massive collaborative effort to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales from ship strikes, gear entanglements and other threats. All work and images are under scientific permit from NMFS. NEAQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11096104970335431798noreply@blogger.comBlogger350125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-64923044543904829582016-05-26T17:02:00.001-04:002016-05-27T11:22:19.751-04:00Researchers Go Wild For Spring 2016 Collection!Spring in New England means right whales feast upon large blooms of zooplankton in Cape Cod Bay (CCB) and the nearby Great South Channel, which allows data hungry research teams to get a lot of work done! The Center for Coastal Studies (CCS) runs dedicated aerial surveys to cover CCB from December to May, and collects water samples to monitor habitat conditions. The Northeast Fisheries Science Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-60544827891805517862016-05-18T14:47:00.000-04:002016-05-18T15:10:16.096-04:00Catching up on Winter 2016Whew! For those of you who have been paying attention to the subject of right whales in the news, you know that the past few months have kept researchers on their toes! Let's dive in and get everyone up to speed, first with the Southeast Season. Stay tuned for our Spring season update next!
WINTER (SOUTHEAST) SEASON:
Each winter, pregnant females (along with others) swim to the shallow waters Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-85687510082369906142016-01-25T10:54:00.001-05:002016-01-26T10:16:47.268-05:00Reducing Rope Strength Could Reduce Entanglement SeverityWith vessel strikes to right whales on the decline since numerous mitigation measures were put into place, the current number one threat to right whales is entanglement in fishing gear. The majority of the entangling fishing gear involves pot or trap gear (for bottom dwellers like lobster and crab, or certain fish species) and gillnet (for groundfish like cod and haddock, and other fish Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-74198454296749867302015-11-30T10:02:00.000-05:002015-11-30T10:27:57.444-05:00Exciting Right Whale Sponsorship News!For
more than 20 years, over 2,300 people have supported our research by
participating in the Right Whale Sponsorship Program. As sponsors, they have
learned about the plight of this endangered species and our 35 years of
research to protect them. The Right Whale Sponsorship Program provides vital
support for our work and we are so grateful to all who have taken part in the
Program over the yearsUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-22904131108274282282015-11-09T11:25:00.002-05:002015-11-09T12:08:53.041-05:00#25: BOF 2015 By The Numbers2 months
21 team staff and volunteers
4 survey boats (Nereid, Callisto, Shelagh, Jupiter)
3 survey areas (Bay of Fundy [BOF], Roseway Basin [RB], Gulf of St. Lawrence [GSL])
35 survey days total
3073 nautical miles on survey total
2 individual whales photographed by GSL team
8 individual whales photographed by BOF team
14 individual whales photographed by RB team
17 known North Atlantic right Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-42147420114516489022015-10-26T16:23:00.001-04:002015-10-27T11:01:35.227-04:00#24: Last days on Roseway Basin and an exciting surprise!
After a terrific day with right whales on September 13, we retreated to the wharf at Sable Fish Packers on Cape Sable Island, NS, to nestle among the fishing boats and wait out another couple of days of bad weather. By Monday, the weather had moved through, finally clearing on land, however the fog lingered offshore.
Fog clearing at Cape Sable Island. Photo: Moira Brown
Nestled among Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-90175627417939191302015-10-02T14:22:00.000-04:002015-10-05T10:08:37.022-04:00#23: The Rain Never Bothered Us Anyway (Roseway Basin)After a two-day Shelburne respite from the open ocean, we ventured back out onto Roseway Basin on September 12th. We surveyed the eastern side and it was very gray and overcast the whole day, without much to see. Then, on the final watch of the day, Moe and Marianna spotted a whale blow and a shallow fluking dive: our first right whale on Roseway Basin this season! It was a Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-73210173771579785212015-09-29T10:25:00.006-04:002015-09-29T10:25:24.459-04:00#22: The Final Fundy PushEarly on September 22 as we were surveying the Bay of Fundy, we spotted the flukes of a large, diving whale and soon realized there was more than one whale in the area. We found two humpbacks and photographed them. As we were working them, we spotted a right whale close by, identified as Glacier (Catalog #1402).
Glacier's back scar is visible where the water starts to wash over his back. PhotoUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-71534943227874253492015-09-27T10:50:00.001-04:002015-09-30T14:03:05.827-04:00#21: Here We Go Again...Roseway Basin
After enduring a myriad of issues on our August Roseway
Basin trip, including battling the fog monster and a broken generator, we
placed all of our hope for whales on the September trip. Things could only get better…right?
We had a slightly different crew this time around: Hilary
Moors-Murphy from Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), Jen Gatzke from Northeast Fisheries Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-24162724846966547652015-09-24T09:19:00.000-04:002015-09-24T10:26:28.115-04:00#20 Bay of Warmth (Part 5): GSL Right Whales!
This is Part Five of a series of posts about surveys taking place in the Baie de Chaleur in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence. Click on the links to read Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four!
After a beautiful afternoon with near ideal survey
conditions we began our long trek from Bonaventure Island back to the
Stonehaven dock. We encountered the (presumably) same Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-76188262293450856852015-09-22T08:14:00.000-04:002015-09-23T08:49:00.678-04:00#19 Bay of Warmth (Part 4): Gannets EverywhereThis is Part Four of a series of posts about surveys taking place in the Baie de Chaleur in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence. Click on the links to read Part One, Part Two, and Part Three!
While hauling the R/V Callisto, Alex noticed an adult northern gannet with limited movement at the boat ramp. Upon approach he saw that there was a hook stuck in its wing with line Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-11855044767210898402015-09-20T08:00:00.000-04:002015-09-23T09:12:01.770-04:00#18 Bay of Warmth (Part 3): Heading Offshore for Right Whales
This is Part Three of a series of posts about surveys taking place in the Baie de Chaleur in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence. Click on the links to read Part One and Part Two!
With three full days of survey in excellent conditions and no right whales to be seen we were rejuvenated by a report from our colleagues in the air. An aerial survey had found a group of approximately 15 right Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-14435022161330379892015-09-18T11:22:00.002-04:002015-09-23T09:10:15.437-04:00#17 Bay of Warmth (Part 2): Lets Get on the Water!This is Part Two of a series of posts about surveys taking place in the Baie de Chaleur in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence. Read Part One here.
Once we arrived in our temporary home of Janeville, New Brunswick we quickly went to work getting things ready for survey. We unpacked, set up equipment, launched the boat, checked the weather and met about various trackline strategies. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-36969046715285485452015-09-16T10:39:00.003-04:002015-09-28T10:56:45.460-04:00#16 Bay of Warmth (Part 1)If you are one of our many avid blog readers you will know that the past few years in the Bay of Fundy have been pretty sparse in right whale numbers. Last year, things looked hopeful when we first arrived in the field. Our first two weeks proved very busy and right whale sightings were common. However, after two weeks things turned desolate and right whale sighting became more rare for our team Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-22687835775588933192015-09-11T11:23:00.000-04:002015-09-23T08:49:46.791-04:00#15: An Old Friend-Old Thom Returns to the Bay of FundyOur day started out gray, overcast and gloomy here in Lubec. As we loaded the R/V Nereid the fog horn from West Quoddy Light could be heard in the distance. Normally we hesitate heading out into the Bay of Fundy with the echo of the fog horn in the distance but not this day. The air was heavy, humid and a thick haze was cast over the town. There was no fog but the thick layer of humid, heavy air Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-54542919577201759542015-09-08T08:28:00.000-04:002015-09-08T11:25:52.499-04:00#14: The Basking Shark of LubecOn the morning of September 2, we received a few calls from our colleague Chris, relaying information from members of the community about a live animal that had stranded far out on Mowry Beach in the Lubec channel, just a couple of miles from our field station. Chris and a local marine patrol officer went to the shoreline and used binoculars to identify the animal as a basking shark.
Marks in Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-7291467986213794282015-09-03T14:29:00.001-04:002015-09-03T14:35:13.503-04:00#13: Two More Right Whales in the Bay!As we sailed into the Bay of Fundy in the early morning of August 28th, I felt a mixture of hope and excitement for the possibility of again experiencing the rare event that had occurred a few days before during a survey: sightings of one of the most endangered whales in the world. Fog and bad weather had kept us in on recent days, and the presence of a reporter and a cameraman from CBC made us Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-8934027874041041232015-09-01T12:10:00.002-04:002015-09-01T12:10:36.740-04:00#12: Meet Molly!This season we've invited new faces to the team to introduce themselves and provide a little background on what led them to our research program. We first met Brigid, followed by Samantha. Now it's time to meet Molly, who worked offshore on the first Roseway Basin trip and will be spending the rest of the season surveying the Bay of Fundy on the R/V Nereid.
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Hi! My name Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-91020247048275513622015-08-28T14:44:00.003-04:002015-08-29T17:33:31.176-04:00#11: The First Right Whales We've Seen!Early in the morning on August 23, we left the dock for the first time in days and headed across the Grand Manan channel. A wall of fog greeted us as we entered the Bay of Fundy, and we stopped to listen for whale blows. While we were drifting around, a seagull landed on the bow of the Nereid and amused us for a bit (to be fair, birds hardly ever land on the Nereid). We joked that this Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-36321184015463720652015-08-25T10:40:00.001-04:002015-08-25T10:48:10.277-04:00#10: Every Roseway Trip Has Its ThornThe Roseway team patiently awaited in Yarmouth for a mechanic to drive from Halifax to inspect our generator on Tuesday, August 18. He arrived in the afternoon and promptly got to work. Unfortunately, he delivered some bad news to us after a few hours: the entire generator would need to be replaced. This is not a quick nor inexpensive fix.
Taking a close look at the generator.
Sadly,Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-49260245747714530282015-08-19T16:44:00.002-04:002015-08-19T16:59:52.048-04:00#9: We'd Prefer the Cookie Monster!In case our readers are curious why we have been so quiet recently, check out this article on the "fog monster" that has descended on both the Bay of Fundy and Roseway Basin. Although the fog is beautiful, and perhaps would be welcomed by our friends in the heat wave further south, it makes finding whales very difficult!
Philip and Brigid on the bow in the fog hoping to hear or see a Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-43952807103144468132015-08-17T14:42:00.000-04:002015-08-17T14:42:40.588-04:00#8: Trying To Get Our Ship TogetherWith the weather looking improved and our plankton net onboard, the Roseway team decided to leave Cape Sable Island and head back out to sea on August 13.
Kim Davies, working on the MEOPAR WHaLE project, discusses our tracklines with Moe after delivering a plankton net.
However, as Captain Joe was doing an engine check, he discovered that our fresh water pump had failed. Moe and Joe were Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-11873574643465410132015-08-15T09:39:00.000-04:002015-08-15T09:39:33.945-04:00#7: Meet Sam!This season we've invited new faces to the team to introduce themselves and provide a little background on what led them to our research program. We first met Brigid, so now it's time to meet Samantha Emmert, who will be working in the Bay of Fundy on the R/V Nereid and offshore on the R/V Shelagh.
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I am a recent graduate of Duke University (T'15) with a Bachelor of Science in Biology Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-54996593098610500152015-08-12T16:26:00.000-04:002015-08-12T16:26:29.009-04:00#6: First Peek at Roseway BasinThe Roseway team left for their first offshore adventure on Monday afternoon. As we cruised through the Bay of Fundy, we worked to set up our bunks, review safety procedures and familiarize ourselves with the vessel. With the goal of getting to Roseway on Tuesday morning, we steamed through the night, rotating teams of two at the helm while others slept.
Sam tries on a survival suit.
We Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878077664833865072.post-89272797368115784132015-08-11T21:09:00.000-04:002015-08-18T08:18:03.831-04:00#5: Roseway Adventure Underway!This is our third consecutive year of working with the Canadian Whale Institute (CWI) to survey for right whales in Canadian waters offshore, with the purpose of searching for new potential habitats as well as conducting systematic surveys through Roseway Basin, a known right whale habitat. Our research vessel for these offshore trips is the comfortable liveaboard Shelagh, generously made Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0