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North Atlantic right whale on the brink of extinction
The North Atlantic right whale lives off the east coasts of the United States and Canada. Since 2017 NOAA has been investigating an Unusual Mortality Event for the species, driven mainly by entanglement in fishing gear and vessel strikes.
Open on the interactive globeNOAA estimates (October 2025) that about 384 individuals were alive at the start of 2024, including only about 70 reproductively active females. From 2017 to July 2026 the UME recorded 43 dead whales, 41 seriously injured and 92 injured or in poor health; in 2026, up to 14 July, there was 1 death and 2 serious injuries from entanglement plus 3 cases of poor health. More than 85 percent of the population has been entangled at least once. The New England Aquarium maintains the right whale catalog and aerial surveys, and in August 2026 published a study on reducing the impact of offshore wind construction off southern New England.
Species
| Species | IUCN status | Population | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eubalaena glacialis Eubalaena glacialis | critically endangered (IUCN CR) | (2024) | fisheries.noaa.gov |
Needs
- habitat
- animal rescue
Who is helping
Organisations that, according to their own publications, work on this event (2). Donations go directly to each organisation's own website - GLOBURNS does not handle payments.
- Center for Coastal Studies (CCS)The Center for Coastal Studies in Provincetown on Cape Cod runs a Right Whale Ecology Program and the Marine Animal Entanglement Response (MAER) team, on call around the…Donate on the organisation's website (coastalstudies.org)
- New England Aquarium (NEAQ)The New England Aquarium in Boston studies the North Atlantic right whale through its Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life: the individual catalog, aerial surveys and…Donate on the organisation's website (support.neaq.org)
Sources
- fisheries.noaa.gov fisheries.noaa.gov/species/north-atlantic-right-whale
- fisheries.noaa.gov fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-life-distress/2017-2026-north-atlantic-right-whale-unu…
- neaq.org neaq.org/conservation-research/right-whales/
- neaq.org neaq.org/research-guides-mitigation-efforts-to-reduce-harm-to-right-whales/
- en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Atlantic_right_whale
- iucnredlist.org iucnredlist.org/species/41712/178589687
Seed record, before editorial verification. Every number links to its source; report errors on the Corrections page. Methodology · Corrections
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