Winning the fight for the lives of right whales, savvy?

I first encountered a right whale more than 30 years ago. It was a breathtaking experience. Even now, each time I have the privilege of coming across one, I am always in awe.

Right whales were heavily targeted during the whaling era. They were highly valued for their abundant oil and baleen plates. Slow-moving behavior, slurping plankton in sandy shoals by the shore, made them the "right" whales to hunt. They have so much blubber, they do not sink when dead. The relentless hunting led to a severe decline in their populations, pushing them to the brink of extinction.

Though whaling is no longer a threat to them, right whales continue to face numerous challenges. The recovery of their populations has been slow, and they remain critically endangered.

Right now, there are estimated to be fewer than 350 right whales remaining in the wild, only 70 of which are reproducing females.

Right whales are threatened by ship strikes, entanglements in fishing gear and lobster traps, reduced prey availability, habitat degradation, and climate change impacts. We win the fight for the lives of right whales on three fronts.

Soon to be implemented, all ships in the presence of right whales may travel no faster than ten miles per hour. This has caused the New England Aquarium to suspend whale watching in April and May because right whales are here.

Lobster and snow crab gear are being engineered so there will no longer be lobster pots floating on the surface at the end of long, dangerous lines. Instead, trappers will use GPS to locate their traps and use an app that will cause one end of a line of traps to rise to the surface for retrieval and resetting. Lineless traps are being developed by scientists working with lobstermen. They still have some engineering to do.

The third setback facing right whales is reduced plankton populations. During the last twenty years productivity of phytoplankton is today 65% of what it once was. This makes no sense for plants in warmer water with more nutrients washing off the land. During this time, there has been an increase in suburban lawns using chemicals (as opposed to natural chemical-free lawns) and an increase in the spraying of herbicides, including glyphosate in RoundUp, to clear pipe and powerlines of plant growth.

To save right whales and all marine life established residential lawns should be treated the same way that golf courses treat their fairways by not spreading quick-release fertilizer, which usually includes herbicides as well as excess nitrogen that feeds harmful algal blooms.

Protecting right whales is not only about their survival as a species but also about preserving the health and integrity of marine ecosystems for future generations.

Right whales play a vital role in ecosystem stability. As filter feeders, they help regulate prey populations, preventing ecological imbalances. Their feeding behavior also influences nutrient cycling and how productive our oceans are, which has cascading effects throughout the marine food web.

Here at Global Warming Solutions, we are committed to right whale conservation. We advocate for more sustainable fishing practices, fishing gear and lobster trap modifications, boat speed limits, and better stewardship of our own properties. And we only support legislators and candidates for office who champion our oceans.

Every small action counts when it comes to protecting right whales. By collectively working towards their conservation, we can make a significant impact on their survival and the health of our oceans as a whole.

More soon,

Rob