Is "Stumpy" back? According to reports out of Australia the whale was spotted off the coast of Queensland. The humpback whale lost its tail in a killer whale attack when it was a calf, seven years ago. Amazingly, the whale is still able to make the annual migration route without a tail.
Listen to humpback whales off the coast of Bermuda in this video. These same whales can be found off the coast of Newfoundland during their annual migration.
Members of the White House staff are working to block a new policy that would expand federal protections for the North Atlantic right whale. The NOAA is proposing speed limits on ships traveling in the Atlantic Ocean when whale migration is at its highest. The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) is holding up a ruling to protect the whales. The right whale rule has been stuck at OIRA since February 2007.
The first known photos of a Northern right whale giving birth have been taken off the coast of Florida/Georgia. The Northern right whales migrate to these warmer calving grounds every year. Monica Zani, a researcher for the New England Aquarium, snapped the photos.
See the photos here.
Whales and dolphins are out in droves in Monterey Bay, California. Pods of up to 40 orcas have been spotted, some chasing after gray whale calves. Up to 20 humpbacks have also been spotted near the bay.
This could be the best year for whale watching in years due to the abundance of food for the aquatic mammals.
