North Atlantic Right Whale Entangled in Rope
There are only about 350 North Atlantic right whales left in the North Atlantic. One of these whales is entangled in two 16 foot ropes. However, the ropes did not stop her from giving birth to a calf. Due to the calf’s presence, rescue efforts have seized. It is too dangerous for the calf at this time, since vessels would need to get close.
Mother and Calf
Snow Cone, the 17 year old North Atlantic right whale, has been entangled in rope since last March. She had about 300 feet of rope removed from her in Plymouth Harbor, Massachusetts. In the summer of last year she lost her male calf due to a collision with a vessel in New Jersey. Rescuers do not want the whale to lose another calf but will continue to monitor her situation.
Even though the rope is tangled in the whales mouth she still manages to eat and migrated 1,300 miles from Canada to Georgia. It’s incredible what our fishing nets do to wildlife. Will anything ever change?
Right now, Snow Cone is the second known mother-calf pairing of the breeding 2021-22 season. With their lives being threatened by ships, climate change and rope entanglement, it’s unsure how long they will survive. So far, this North Atlantic right whale is strong and resilient. She has lost a calf, travelled many miles, and gave birth to a new one. All of this while being dragged by feet of rope. The only thing we and rescue teams can do is watch from a distance as the whale raising her calf. Let’s hope that the calf doesn’t get tangled as well. Otherwise we will lose two more whales due to our ignorant and selfish ways of living. Just last month we learned that whale poop is beneficial to our eco system. So why do we continue to harm them instead?
