POT POURRI

Scientists discover rare unidentified baby North Atlantic right whale off Canada

Maine, Nov 8: It would seem difficult to miss a 15,000-pound (6,804-kilogram) baby, but for months scientists who study rare whales did just that, and now they couldn’t be happier.
Researchers in Canada captured images of an unidentified baby North Atlantic right whale, one of the rarest sea mammals in the world, off Anticosti Island in Quebec in September.
Scientists with the New England Aquarium in Boston said this week that after analyzing photos and data about right whales, they have determined it was a calf likely born months ago that went unseen during winter surveys for the giant animals.
The discovery puts the number of baby right whales discovered from the most recent birthing season at 24, the most productive year for the whales since 2009 and the fourth-highest count on record, the aquarium said. The whales number only about 380 in the world, and their population has fallen since 2010.
The whale was seen with its mother, a 38-year-old whale known to researchers as Silt, scientists said. Right whales give birth off the southeastern U.S. in winter before venturing north to New England and Canada to feed.
The whales are extensively cataloged with photography by researchers because they are so rare.
It’s also rare for the researchers who study the whales to miss a baby, but the discovery was a welcome surprise, said Amy Warren, a scientist at the New England Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center.
“Silt was briefly seen in the southeastern U.S. calving grounds in February 2026, so it’s possible she had the calf there but snuck away before they were documented together. This is an exciting discovery for us so late in the year,” Warren said.
Baby right whale births are closely tracked by scientists because the tiny population needs successful calving years to remain viable.
There are only about 70 reproductive-age females left in the population, and scientists have said the whales have reached 20 calves in a season only a few times since 2010.
That was when their numbers started falling, as they lost about 25% between 2010 and 2020. (AP)